Unlove
by Caro June
Summary: NCIS investigates vicious crimes against young Navy women, which run the gamut from unwanted sexual advances, to rape, torture & murder. Tony & Ziva go on a dangerous undercover mission to help solve the crime. Better summary inside. NOW COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1 Elevators & Head Slaps

_**Author's Notes: I have previously only written in the Star Wars world, and in fact, have my next Star Wars story percolating ("Time Will Tell"). But while it is in the "brewing" stage, my mind came up with this NCIS scenario and title and I have to write it while it is demanding my attention. It will be primarily a Tony and Ziva story, but with input and interaction from all the other main NCIS characters. I hope it will be mostly a case study, with lots of action as the team tries to catch the bad guys, but there will also be a healthy dose of romance, and probably some hurt/comfort going on as well. **_

_**Anyway, it may be a fairly short story, with just a few chapters, or I could go on for awhile, based on reviews. So, let me know what you think and if you would like to see this story continue, or wrap up quickly. Thanks. Summary is below:**_

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**Summary:**

**NCIS has been called in to investigate several crimes against young Navy women, crimes that have run the gamut from harassment, threats, unwanted sexual advances, to rape and finally torture and murder. A few victims who survived the earlier assaults have only been able to describe their attackers as male, and that they seemed to be officers, used to ordering others around. The attackers always wore a mask of some kind, and were able to keep their identities secret. The victims have described several different men, so NCIS is convinced they have a ring of some sort. Research has shown there is a concentration of murders in a certain area. They suspect there is something on the order of a "Fight Club" or secret society, but have not figured out how it operates, who the leaders are or how to stop it.**

**Tony and Ziva will be sent undercover, posing as man and wife. They will "move" to the suspect neighborhood, and they will have to learn about the club, so Tony can infiltrate it with Ziva guarding his back. She also hopes to learn something useful by making friends with the other wives.**

**To make things more complicated, Tony and Ziva have begun to confront their feelings for each other. However, Ziva is still suffering from emotional distrust after all she has been through. Though they have been cautiously and covertly dating, she is not willing to commit. Tony, on the other hand, is tired of fighting his feelings and tries to help her understand that he is in this for the long haul. He will see the undercover assignment as an opportunity, not only to close in on the ring of men attacking young women, and bring them to justice, but as a chance to show Ziva how much he truly cares for her. He hopes their time together might convince her to take their relationship to the next level – and even out into the open. Though he is well aware of Gibb's rule # 12, he is willing to risk Gibb's wrath for the sake of his love for Ziva.**

**Now, on to the story.**

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"**Unlove"**

**Chapter One**

"**Elevators & Head Slaps"**

The elevator doors to the bullpen opened and NCIS Special Agent, Anthony DiNozzo, walked out, his step extra jaunty and his smile wide. However, as his eyes took in the heightened activity going on around him, the smile dimmed a little. A surreptitious glance at the clocks on the wall revealed he wasn't late; in fact, he was a good 15 minutes early. But fellow agents Timothy McGee, Ziva David and most importantly, Agent in Charge, Leroy Jethro Gibbs were all at their desks, obviously already working a case.

He made his way to his desk, and sat his backpack down. When no one even looked at him, he realized that whatever it was, it had to be serious. Suddenly, his gut clenched and he knew. "It's another one of the Club Murders, isn't it?" he asked no one in particular. "Boss, why didn't you call me? I would have gotten here early…." His voice trailed off as Gibbs glared at him. "I did call you, DiNozzo. At 0430. But you didn't answer your cell phone." Gulping, Tony kept his eyes away from Ziva.

"Ah, I must have been in the shower Boss. And I didn't check my cell phone. Sorry." He couldn't keep himself from apologizing even though he knew that was against one of Gibb's rules. "Won't happen again, Boss." Tony slid into his chair, turned on his computer and looked up at the screens, all more or less at the same time. "It better not, DiNozzo," Gibbs grumbled.

"What do we have?" Tony asked, as his eyes took in the information coming at him. "Another murder," Tim answered, when Gibbs continued to ignore Tony. Tony glanced again at the back of the Gibb's head, wondering if it was possible he knew that Ziva had spent the night at his place. "Nah, he couldn't, we were careful," he thought to himself. He decided to get Gibb's attention, one way or another.

"Another Navy girl?" Tony winced even as he said it, knowing it would incur Gibb's wrath. But he wanted some kind of a response; he hated being ignored. He was right and the wrath descended on him quickly.

"I don't ever want to hear you refer to one of our victims as a 'Navy girl' again, you got that, Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo?" Gibb's glare could have peeled the paint right off the side of a navy frigate. Tony nodded, knowing that he was back in the game now. "Got it boss. So, who is she?"

"Was," Ziva replied succinctly. "Navy Petty Officer Erin Kinnett. Her body was found about 2 miles from the neighborhood we've been looking at."

Gibbs stood up abruptly, tossed the keys to McGee and headed toward the elevator. At Tony's stunned expression when the keys were given to his Probie (he still thought of Tim that way, even though Ziva was technically more Probie than McGee), Gibbs hid a smile. Whacking his senior agent none too lightly on the back of his head, he managed to be at the elevator doors before Tony could elicit his little pained yip. "Grab your gear. Ducky and Palmer are already on their way."

All three agents scrambled to get their gear and be the first one in the elevator. Tony might have been the last one into the office, but that just meant he hadn't stowed his gear yet. Grabbing his backpack, he leaped over his desk and made it into the elevator with Gibbs, just before the doors closed. Waggling his fingers at Ziva and Tim as the doors shut in their faces, he couldn't keep a big grin off his face.

But the grin faded as he caught a look at his boss' face. Gibbs looked tired. Gibbs hardly ever looked tired, so Tony knew this case was bothering him a lot. "Here all night, boss?" he asked, leaning back casually against the elevator rail. Tony turned his head, back and forth, cracking his neck to ease the tightness of his muscles. So he was unprepared when the elevator slammed to a halt.

"What?" he had to catch himself from sprawling all over the floor. "Tony." Gibbs' voice was rough and deep. "What is going on with you and Ziva?"

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Tim and Ziva stopped abruptly in front the elevator doors. Tim quietly banged his head against the now solid wall. "How does he DO that?" He asked. Ziva was more practical. "He's Tony. He just does." And McGee looked up just in time to see her disappearing at a fast trot down the stairs. "Hey, wait!" he called, hurrying after her.

"Hold up, Ziva! I can't run as fast as you. Especially not with all this stuff!" Tim wondered for about the thousandth time why HE always got stuck carrying most of the team's extra equipment. He supposed it was because he put up with it, and because Tony was always racing off after Gibbs, and Ziva, well, she just had a way about her that kept either of them from asking her to carry stuff. Not that she wasn't strong enough; they just didn't ask her to.

Ziva smiled to herself as she kept two flights ahead of McGee. She knew she could get to the garage before the elevator if she ran on alone, but she took pity on her partner and sort of waited for him. Her smile widened a bit as she thought back to the night before.

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Tony had been trying to get her to stay over at his place for weeks, ever since one particularly harrowing case where Ziva had almost been killed in a cross fire. She had escaped only because at the last possible second Tony had pushed her out of the way and Tim had stood up and killed both of the perpetrators with a cool composure that had amazed all of them. Tony had turned her in his arms, where she had ended up at his flying leap that had borne them both to the ground, and had not been able to stop the words that had escaped his lips. "Don't you ever do that to me again, darling. I really can't live without you, you know." The word darling was so out of character for the Senior Agent that she had thought at first he was teasing her. But one look into his eyes and she had known he was completely serious. If she'd had any doubt, his lips claiming hers for a brief, but extremely passionate kiss had put those to rest.

They had started to spend more and more of their off time together after that; sometimes with the whole group, minus Gibbs, of course, but often they managed to find themselves alone. Usually they were at a restaurant, arguing over what kind of food was best, or just walking around D.C., if the weather was decent. They had spent a few hours at each other's apartments a couple of different times, and Tony had always been a perfect gentleman, which had sort of surprised both of them. Mostly, they were just getting to know each other at deeper and deeper levels and were finding out that in spite of their very profound and real differences, they actually had a lot in common. Their relationship was moving from one of deep friendship to something more, though neither of them was quite sure what that more was.

Tony had started inviting her to his place more often and she had begun to come over and eat with him. Ziva found that to her amazement, she was able to relax at Tony's apartment more than at her own. Probably because of what had happened there, when Tony had killed Michael Rivkin. So far they hadn't really talked all that much about that, or what had followed. They had occasionally touched on it, but both held back, not wanting to damage their emerging, but fragile relationship.

So last night, when he had asked her over for his famous Italian Meatball foot long subway-type sandwich, she had come and had been totally impressed with the meal, though she had of course, not let on how good his cooking actually was. After they had eaten, Tony had let her relax on the couch, and she had drifted off to sleep, listening to him quietly play the piano in the background. It had at first surprised her to learn that he played, but as she got to know him better, she realized it was simply one of the ways he was able to express the softer side of himself, without showing that same side to the outside world.

Ziva had awakened some hours later, to find her head on a pillow and a soft blanket draped over her. Tony was asleep on the floor, not far from her. She had smiled at the romantic gesture of him sleeping near her, but not with her, appreciating the fact he was not pushing anything sexual on her. Though she was definitely physically attracted to him, she had been hurt so often that she actually felt shy when she considered going to bed with him. And while they had flirted outrageously for years, this was somehow different. She had drifted back to sleep for a few more hours before getting up in time to get her shower before Tony did. He had pounded on the bathroom door just as she was toweling off, demanding to be let in to "do his business."

Ziva had considered letting him in, but decided against it, knowing what it could lead to, and wanting more time together before making that particular decision. So she had made him wait until she was dressed. She reached up and gave him a jaunty kiss on her way out of the bathroom and told him not to be late. Ziva had left as he'd gone into the bathroom. In retrospect, she remembered seeing his phone on the coffee table, but hadn't thought about it. Hers had rung as she was on her way back to her place, intending to change, but instead she had gone on into the office. She kept an extra sweater in her desk and had just pulled it on over her blouse. She figured no one, with the possible exception of Abby, would notice and so far she'd been right.

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Ziva brought her thoughts back to the present, when she realized she had slowed down enough that McGee had actually caught up to her. "Well, we'll never beat them now," she said, as she grabbed one of the bags Tim had. "Hurry up, McGee!"

They were both surprised when they got to the garage and saw that the elevator had not arrived yet. "Oh oh," McGee's voice dropped almost an octave. "What did Tony do now? Gibbs doesn't usually use his conference room for one of us."

Before Ziva could reply, the doors slid open, to reveal the objects of their discussion. Gibbs looked even more pissed than usual and Tony seemed to be wavering between scared, angry and a little shell shocked. "Don't!" he snapped at McGee and Ziva, when it looked like they were going to question them. "Just get the car and shut up."

And with that, Tim shoved the equipment bags at one startled Israeli and ran to get the car. Tony ignored Ziva's raised eyebrow and when the car arrived, climbed in the backseat without a word about riding shotgun. When Gibb's got in the passenger seat, and held his index finger in front of his face and barked "Drive!" at Tim, they knew something was very, very wrong.

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_**A/N: Well? What do you think? Wrap it up quickly or continue for awhile? Reviews and feedback will help me decide. Thanks for reading.**_


	2. Chapter 2  Boss, I Have an Idea

_A/N: Thank you for the reviews, the traffic and especially for all of you who alerted this story. I have tried to respond to each reviewer personally; if I missed you, I do apologize. My life is taking an unexpected, but exciting turn – I'm headed back to college this fall to complete my degree and while I'm incredibly excited and grateful for the opportunity, between working full time, managing my family and my personal life, writing for Fanfiction, __though extremely gratifying to me, does not always make the top of my priority list. I am going to try and finish this particular story before I actually go back to class in September, since my evenings will be taken up with classes and studying. I'll do my best to finish in a timely manner, without cutting corners, I promise! And, while I try to do some research, let me apologize in advance for any technical errors, or any other mistakes. I write for enjoyment and while I like things to be as correct as possible, I'm more interested in the relational dynamics than scientific accuracy._

**Oh and here is the disclaimer I forgot last time:**

**I do not own anything NCIS, except the season one and season two DVDs. I am just planning to take the characters out, dust them off (beat them up a little), and then return them all nice and tidy when I'm through with them. **

**On to Chapter Two.**

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"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Two**

"**Boss, I Have an Idea****"**

Dr. Mallard and Jimmy Palmer, his autopsy assistant were already at the crime scene when Agent McGee pulled the car to a stop just outside the crime tape. The ride from NCIS headquarters had been quiet, much quieter than usual. Tony had spent the entire time looking out the window and Gibbs had stared straight ahead. Tim had tried to lighten the mood, but had given up when Tony didn't even respond to a movie reference he tried. They were all relieved when they arrived, though privately Tim wondered if he should feel so thankful they had a dead body to use as an excuse to get out of the car.

Gibbs squatted down beside the M.E. and asked in his terse voice, "What do have, Ducky?"

The English doctor squinted up at him and replied, "Same as the others, Jethro, I'm afraid. Though this young woman has a bit more obvious trauma than the last two." He indicated some visible bruising around her eyes and on her arms. "I suspect I will find a great deal more damage when I get her back to autopsy."

"Time of death?" Gibbs asked, as he reached for the purse Palmer was handing him. The medical examiner withdrew the liver probe and peered at it. "Sometime between 2300 and 0200 I believe."

Gibbs went through the young woman's purse, handing her ID to McGee, who immediately entered her service number into his portable scanner. "It's Petty Officer Erin Kinnett, boss, the one who was reported missing by her Lieutenant Commander. She was serving at Virginia Beach, Oceana Naval Air Station. Commanding Officer is Captain Dugan Briggs."

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs barked at his senior agent. "Photos and inspect the perimeter. David, interview the witnesses. Tim, sketch the scene and canvass for trace evidence." If anyone noticed that he used Agent McGee's first name, they were careful not to comment on it.

The team quickly scattered, putting their personal issues aside in order to do their job. Ducky observed that the usual banter seemed to be missing, but refrained from commenting. "Come on Mr. Palmer; let's get her home so we can start getting some answers. I have a feeling this will be a very long day. But you will tell me your story, won't you my dear?" By now, none of the team even showed the slightest reaction when Ducky entered into a very one-sided conversation with his "patients."

It was several hours later when Tony entered Abby's lab. The music, very loud and to his way of thinking, over the top even for the eccentric forensic scientist's tastes, had assaulted him before he got to the doors. "Abby. Abby!" he finally had to shout to get her attention. But as soon as she saw him, she slammed her CafPow down on the counter and flew into his arms.

A very startled Tony managed to keep from falling over backwards as Abby threw herself bodily at him. "TonyTony TonyTony TonyTony TonyTony TonyTony TonyTony TonyTony TonyTony!" she chanted as first she hugged him so tightly he could hardly breathe, and then pushed him sharply away. "What have you done to my Silver Fox?"

"Ooof!" was Tony's less than elegant response. "I didn't do anything, Abs. Now, have you got a report yet on the blood sample I sent you? The one that I didn't think matched our victim?"

"Well, _Mr. I know more than I'm willing to tell_," she whirled around, black braids lightly slapping Tony on his forehead, "I have Major Mass Spec working on it, but he hasn't reached any conclusions yet. I didn't get a hit on any of the evidence Timmy brought in either, just like before."

They were all frustrated with the fact that though each crime had yielded a great deal of physical evidence, it had all led to a dead end. "Did Ziva get anywhere with any of the witnesses?" she asked without looking back at Tony. If she had, she would have seen the slight tightening of his eyes at the mention of Ziva.

"I haven't talked to Ziva. I rode back with Ducky; she came back with Tim and Gibbs." Tony crossed his arms and leaned back against the counter top. "This case, Abs, it's got us all seeing double. We should be able to do something, and all we accomplish is staying one step behind the killer." He blew air out through his lips and slowly banged his head against a shelf.

Abby was instantly contrite that she had been so hard on Tony. After all, he was the big brother she'd never had. She turned to look at him and reached out to stop him from hitting his head on the wall, trailing a finger gently across this forehead, pushing his hair back. "We'll get him Tony, we always do. You know we will." She beamed her brilliant, beautiful smile at him, then whirled around again, and shook her finger at her lab machines. "Major Mass Spec! No more lollygagging. Get busy! Find me a DNA Match. Now! That's an order!" And she glared expectantly at her favorite machine.

Right on cue, it pinged. Abby and Tony exchanged a grin and she quickly read from the report. "Hmm, just like you thought, Tony. The blood doesn't match our victim. But, it isn't a match to any navy personnel either. That should rule out military involvement, right?"

"Not necessarily Abs," Tony stifled a yawn. "Just means there was someone else on the scene that left some blood. Good work, though. I'll take this report to Gibbs. Thanks doll." Tony dropped a kiss on the top of Abby's head and headed for the elevator.

On the ride up to the bullpen he thought about his earlier confrontation with Gibbs. As he so often was, he'd been caught off guard when he realized his boss obviously knew more than he'd thought he did. Making a quick decision, he had ruled out lying.

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"Me and Ziva?" he'd stalled for time, gathering his thoughts. "We're friends, boss. Really, really good friends. And before you say anything, no, we're not sleeping together." He thought about saying more, but decided erring on the side of caution was best.

"Is that right, DiNozzo?" Gibbs raised his left eyebrow and glared at him. "Then why was she at your place all night last night?"

Tony's mouth gaped open for a moment before he snapped it shut. "Wow." He shook his head. "Are you spying on us, Gibbs? Because I'm not sure it's any of your business."

"It is my business. What my Senior Field Agent and his Probie are doing, is most definitely my business. And you know how I feel about Rule # 12."

Tony closed his eyes and leaned his head back. "I know. **Your team**. **Your Rules**. We've had this discussion before, boss. But we're not sleeping together." His voice trailed off, leaving an unspoken "not yet," hovering in the air.

"Then tell me what's going on with you two. I may look like I'm too old to care, but I still notice things." Gibbs voice took on a slightly gentler tone, but it was still obvious he wanted answers. Before the younger man could respond, he continued. "Look, Tony. I know you two have been through hell and back together. And I know that you can't help getting your emotions involved. But, I won't have my team members sleeping together. It's not gonna happen, DiNozzo."

Tony opened his eyes and stared at his boss. "And what would you do if it already had? Fire me, since I'm her supervisor? Let her go? Fire us both? Really? After all you've pulled in your time?" His voice took on a sharp edge.

Though he often played the clown, Tony knew a lot more about people than he let on. And the time he had spent with Director Shepherd, especially when Gibbs had been in Mexico, had gained him certain knowledge. He had no intention of using that knowledge against his boss, but neither was he willing to stand and quietly take a scolding. While he respected Gibbs like no other person on earth, he had no intention of cowering before him.

Gibbs narrowed his eyes and snapped back, "What's that supposed to mean, DiNozzo?" He could sound very, very dangerous when he wanted to. Tony tried hard not to feel intimidated, but failed miserably. Realizing he'd said more than he really wanted to, he dropped his eyes first. "Nothing, boss." Tony's voice sounded flat. "It doesn't mean a damn thing. But what I do on my own time, is my business." And with that, Tony punched the switch that started the elevator going again.

Refusing to look at Gibbs, he couldn't stop the refrain that was playing in his head as they descended the rest of the way in silence. "_I'm screwed. I'm screwed. Totally and completely screwed._" When the doors opened and he saw the expectant faces of Tim and Ziva, he couldn't look at them.

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With a slight shake of his head, Tony brought his mind back to the present. He was a professional, after all, and he intended to act like one. Exiting the elevator, he headed directly to Gibb's desk. "Boss," his voice was steady. "Abby confirmed the blood I found on the grass wasn't Petty Officer Kinnet's; but it wasn't in any of the military data bases either. And I have an idea."

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**A/N: Ok, thanks for reading. Tell me what you think and I will try hard to get the next chapter up this week**.


	3. Chapter 3  Setting Up Housekeeping

**Disclaimer:**

**I do not own anything NCIS and make no money on any of this. **

_A/N: Wow. Thank you all for the reviews, story alerts, favorite story status and the traffic from across the world. I'm humbled, truly I am._

_Special thanks to my signed reviewers: I tried to send each of you a personal message. If I missed any of you, I do apologize. And for those who didn't sign in and I couldn't send personal thanks to, well, thank you now. Special note to ForeignMusicLyrics - no, Tony and Ziva aren't working undercover yet, but will be as of this chapter. Hopefully it will all become clear as the story evolves. This chapter is needed to set up the forthcoming action, which will begin in chapter 4._

_Enjoy and please keep letting me know what you think. _

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"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Three**

"**Setting Up Housekeeping"**

Special Agent in Charge, LeRoy Jethro Gibbs looked up when his senior field agent left the elevator and walked directly to his desk. If Tony was still bothered by their earlier talk, he wasn't showing any signs of it. DiNozzo perched himself on the corner of Gibb's desk and waved at the screens above their heads.

"What idea is that, DiNozzo?" Gibbs might be irked at him, but he knew Tony well enough to know that wouldn't stop the younger man from continuing to work the case as hard as he could. Tony's methods were often unorthodox, but they also worked most of the time, so he was willing to listen to whatever idea he might present.

"Ah, well, Boss." Tony hesitated a moment, trying to make his racing thoughts line up into some kind of order that would make sense. "You know how we always find so much evidence at these crime scenes?" Gibbs nodded. "And how it always turns up to be one dead end after another?" Another nod. "Well, I'm thinking maybe the evidence that we find is somehow planted; like it isn't the real thing." Tony stopped and looked at his boss a moment, trying to determine if Gibbs was buying his theory. He didn't notice when Agents McGee and David stopped what they were working on and looked up, obviously interested. "What do you think?"

Gibbs tilted his head, considering. "It would explain why there is so much at the crime scenes, but none of it ever makes any sense."

"What about the blood, Tony?" McGee interjected. Tony turned toward the younger man. "That's actually what got me thinking this way, Probie. When Abby ran the sample I brought in, and it didn't match either the victim, or anyone in any of the military databases, I started wondering why."

"And you think you have figured it out, Tony?" Ziva asked. Tony shook his head. "Well, not all of it. But I think whoever the killer is; he's smart. Plenty smart. I mean, he knows enough to not leave any incriminating evidence, but he always leaves so MUCH evidence. If he's smart enough and careful enough not to leave us anything useful…" McGee interrupted before Tony could finish his sentence.

"Then why leave us anything at all?" Tony grinned in Tim's direction. "Exactly, Mc-interruptus. He should be able to get away clean. I mean, where we find the bodies, is obviously a dump site, not the primary crime scene. And we haven't found even one of those yet."

Ziva frowned. "When I interviewed the three women who survived the initial attacks, before he started actually killing his victims, they all had no idea where they had been taken. Just that they were grabbed from behind, drugged with something in a cloth over their mouths, and when they woke up, they were in a room, with no windows, no doors and nothing to identify them."

"And that is when the real horror began," Tim said in a small voice. He still had a hard time being cavalier and acting like it didn't bother him when people were so brutally injured and/or killed.

"Yeah, it is." Tony agreed, refraining from his usual teasing and baiting of the younger man. This particular case had them all on edge and there wasn't anything about it they found amusing. "And the process was simply reversed when they were let go. As awful as it was, they were the lucky ones. At least, they lived through it."

"So, Tony," Gibbs brought them back to the question at hand. "Your idea?"

Tony thought moment more and then gave his most mischievous grin. "You aren't gonna like it boss, you're really not. But it's a good one." With a long suffering sigh, Gibbs just nodded at him to continue.

"Well, you remember how Kate was always profiling people? And sometimes she could profile crime scenes, and even give us an idea of areas to focus on?" Gibbs nodded again, and Tim smiled, though he looked a little sad at the reminder of their fallen comrade. "I remember DiNozzo. And you're right. I'm not going to like this, am I?"

Before Gibbs could stop him, Tony continued in a rush. "Why don't we get Fornell in here with one of their fancy behavioral units? They should be able to get us a geographical profile, maybe even a specific location and if we have that, we can narrow down the pool of suspects." Tony grinned again, pleased with his analysis.

However as the silence lengthened, his smiled faded a little and he began reciting in his head all the reasons this was probably a really dumb idea. For one, Fornell hated him, always calling him DeNutso, or some other demeaning name. And he still wasn't sure of the relationship between Gibbs and Fornell, except that it made "weird" look normal. I mean, who becomes friends with the man who married your ex-wife?

For another, since when did NCIS call in the services of the FBI? Or call for help from anyone for that matter? And he realized he hadn't even begun to consider the amount of red tape that would have to be gone through before they could begin such a joint operation.

Tony was ready to smack himself in the back of the head as the quiet went on. He started to turn away and mumbled, "Never mind, it was a dumb idea. I might as well ask the CIA for help." Tony was looking down and missed the look Ziva shot his direction. She knew Tony had brilliant insights and instincts, but she also knew he sometimes restrained them, for fear of looking stupid or bad in front of his peers. She blamed that on his biological father, though at times she felt Gibbs was partially to blame as well. At the moment, however, she just wished she could go to him and give him a reassuring hug.

"DiNozzo." Gibb's voice was clipped, but not as intense as usual. "I want you to stop doing that." Puzzled, Tony turned in his direction. "Stop what boss? Blabbing out half-formed ideas before I've taken the time to think them through? I'm working on that." And Tony sat down at his computer, calling up the most recent reports on the series of attacks they were trying to get a handle on.

Gibbs actually got up, went over to Tony's desk, whirled his chair around, and placed his hands on the armrests, until DiNozzo had no choice but to face him. "No. I want you to stop downplaying your ideas. I need everyone on my team thinking all the time. And thinking outside the box is what usually results in the best course of action." Here Gibbs turned and actually grinned at the other two team members. "And I don't know anyone who thinks outside the box more than DiNozzo does."

Tony recovered from his shock at what sounded suspiciously like a compliment enough to comment, "Hey, I think I resemble that remark!" But his grin was back in place and he had relaxed.

"So, was there more to your idea? Or do you just want the FBI to figure out where things are happening?" Tim asked. He was just pleased to sense that things were returning to normal with the team.

"Well," Tony drawled, obviously still thinking things through. "If it turns out to be in a military neighborhood, like Ducky thinks it is from his psychological profiles of the live victims and the forensic profiles of the bodies, maybe we could infiltrate. Find out who is behind the attacks. Get them to let their guard down and figure out how they're operating."

"You mean, go undercover, DiNozzo?" Gibbs voice took on his dangerous quality again.

"Aw, well, something like that boss. Doesn't have to be me, although I've had the most experience at covert ops." Tony shrugged, he wasn't bragging, just stating the truth. "But if you think Tim or someone from another team would be a better choice, it's your call."

Gibbs thought for a moment more, and then picked up the phone. "Get me Fornell!" he barked into the receiver. "McGee, get Ducky up here. I want to hear more on his psychological theories." Gibbs sat down again and appeared to be considering all Tony had said. Just as Ducky walked into the bullpen, the phone rang.

Tony grabbed it before anyone else could. "DiNozzo. Yeah, he's here." And he held the receiver out to Gibbs. "It's Fornell." Gibbs took the phone and in a one sided conversation briefly explained the background on the murders, and then Tony's idea of a geographical profile. A few minutes of silence followed. Gibbs then nodded once, as if Fornell could see him. "Yeah, I know. I owe you. Just get the team over here now."

Turning back toward DiNozzo, he continued. "Tony, I want you to head this up. Your idea; your lead. Take Ziva and meet with the profile team when they get here. If they can adequately establish the likely location of the neighborhood or location, then you'll go undercover. Maybe both of you, depending on what kind of area it is."

Turning toward McGee and Ducky, he continued. "McGee, you go with Ducky. I want every piece of information the two of you can give me on the bodies. I need to know exactly what kind of sick bastard it takes to do this, as well as anything you can find to help narrow the location." When everyone stood, as if frozen, Gibbs looked up. "Go! Go! Get to work!" And they all scattered.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A few grueling hours later, Tony and Ziva were still in deep discussion with the two profilers Fornell had sent over. As the evening wore on into night, one of the FBI agents noticed DiNozzo's huge yawn and suggested they finish the next morning. That idea was quickly shot down by both NCIS Agents. Ziva simply left and returned with more coffee. They were still at it, and had just reached some specific conclusions when Gibbs, Ducky and McGee walked in.

"Anything, DiNozzo?" Gibbs cocked his head at his obviously exhausted agents, but did not suggest they take a break.

"Yeah, boss," Tony ran his hand through his hair, leaving it in unusual disarray, evidence of just how tired he really was. "Jackson here has narrowed it down to two neighborhoods."

Without being asked, Jackson explained what he had deduced from all of the evidence he'd been given. "I believe it is an upper middle class neighborhood, probably in the McLean area or Tyson's Corner District. Both regions have a high concentration of military families, almost exclusively navy and mostly officers. I'd have a hard time deciding between the two, however."

"It's in McLean, I'm sure of it." Ducky sounded utterly certain. "Before you ask, Jethro, I asked Abby to run a soil sample of some material found on all three victims. Each one had a small trace of the leaf of the Emerald Ash. Since they are found in very limited areas, I ran a check and found that there is a thriving grove in McLean, but none in any of the other surrounding neighborhoods."

_**(A/N: There is such a tree in Virginia, but I really have no idea where they are found or if they are rare. I just needed an exotic sounding tree for the sake of the story. Also, to anyone who lives in these particular areas, my apologies in advance for the evil things that are going to happen in your neighborhood. I simply googled areas around DC and picked one.**__** )**_

Gibbs looked around at the group gathered in the conference room. "Okay. That's good work people. We now have a location to concentrate on. So, first thing – go home. Get a good night's sleep. And be back here at 0500 ready to plan for our undercover operation." When the others all started to ask questions, Gibbs forestalled them by simply leaving the room.

Glancing around at each other, Ducky was the first to follow suit. "Good night, all. I suggest you do as our fearless leader has instructed. You can be assured he won't be late and if I were you, I wouldn't be either." At that, they all left in a hurry.

Tony and Ziva did not even glance at each other as they left, each to their own apartment.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

When Gibbs entered the bullpen at 0430 the next morning, he was less than surprised to see Tony already there, freshly shaved and dressed nattily as usual. "Morning, boss. I've been going over the real estate websites in the McLean area and found a couple of houses that look promising." Pointing to the overhead screen, he quickly clicked through a few houses. With a big, cheese-eating grin, he stopped on one that was at least 4500 square feet and had a large and luxurious pool. "That's my personal favorite."

"In your dreams, DiNozzo. What else you got?" Gibbs shook his head, glad that Tony evidently was not letting their earlier discussion get in the way of his warped sense of humor. He had a feeling that before this case was finished; the whole team would be in need of all the humor they could get.

The elevator dinged and Ziva and Tim walked in together. "Wow, Tony!" Tim exclaimed. "If that's the new undercover house, count me in."

Tony glanced up at the younger man, a sneaky grin on his face. 'Nope, Tim. If you're going undercover, it will be somewhere more like this." And this time Tony clicked on a picture of a dilapidated hovel, one with several antennas on the roof and no furniture, except for a huge antiquated computer in it.

Gibbs had sauntered up behind both agents and whacked them lightly on the back of both their heads. "Enough, you two. We've got work to do."

Plans began to form quickly after that. It was decided that Tony and Ziva would move into the neighborhood, into a home that was considerably less elegant than the one Tony had first picked out. The rest of the day was spent perfecting their cover story and working with the real estate agency. A visit from Fornell himself to the owner of the local real estate office took care of those formalities and by that evening, "Commander Anthony and Mrs. Ziva Rodgers" were scheduled to become proud new owners of a home located in the heart of an upscale, military neighborhood in the middle of McLean, Virginia.

Two mornings later, Tony and Ziva arranged to meet the real estate agent at the house. Tony was completely decked out in his new Naval Officer Uniform and carried it off quite well. They had debated on whether or not to give Ziva a military persona and had finally decided against it. In checking the demographics of the area, it appeared most of the wives did not work and few were in the military themselves. Ziva would likely have more luck learning about the goings on if she was able to stay "home" during the day, and meet with the other women.

Tony's assignment was as a Commander at Naval Support Activity (NSA) Annapolis. His credentials were impeccable, having been forged by Abby with a little help from some of Fornell's subordinates. He had an office, a secretary and staff (other FBI and NCIS undercover agents) and the appearance of real work to do. Since they had little idea what they were getting themselves into they were being extra careful.

Touring their new home, Tony and Ziva played their parts with panache. They signed the papers out on the front patio, and it was obvious they were observed as they did so. As soon as the real estate agent left, Tony put his arm around Ziva and walked her to their car. On their way, they were stopped by two of their new neighbors and welcomed into the area.

Watching from a van parked several hundred yards away, Gibbs was pleased to see them strike up a conversation. Listening in via the ear wigs both Tony and Ziva wore, he gave them the go ahead to accept an invitation to a block barbecue to be held three nights later, a Friday.

The next morning, their moving van arrived and Tony and Ziva, with help from some "friends", namely Gibbs, McGee and a couple of other NCIS agents, quickly settled in. That night, after everyone else had left, Tony turned to Ziva. Motioning for her to remove her ear wig for just a moment, he smiled into her eyes. "At least Gibbs can't complain about us spending the night together now, can he?" And with that, he walked her into "their" bedroom, gallantly giving her the bed, as he took up residence on the couch under the window.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tony dutifully left for work on both Thursday and Friday mornings. Ziva went about setting up housekeeping, making sure she spent time in the yard, as well as shopping in local stores. She soon struck up a friendship with two other wives; one whose husband was a Lieutenant at the NSA. Ziva was careful to be a bit vague about what Tony's duties were, but it was soon obvious their "husbands" worked in opposite sides of the station.

On Friday evening, Tony and Ziva joined some of their neighbors at a BBQ held two homes over. Mingling and getting to know their neighbors was much more of a chore for Ziva than it was for Tony. Having been raised by a Father who demanded he know protocol for all social situations, he fit in easily. Ziva was much more comfortable in military situations than social ones. However, she carried her part off without a hitch.

She made a point to introduce Tony to her new friend. "Tony, dear," she smiled sweetly. "This is Leana Jenkins. I believe her husband; Roy is stationed at NSA, where you are. Perhaps you two have met?" Ziva turned her smile on Roy who was hovering near.

"No, can't say that we have. Pleasure to meet you Commander," Roy Jenkins held his hand out. Tony shook it firmly. "Sorry. I'm stuck way over in the catacombs, so I haven't had chance to meet too many people yet. Transferred from Naval Station, Everett, Washington. Good to meet you, Roy."

The evening continued, uneventfully. After it was over and Tony and Ziva were back in their "bedroom" they compared notes, with Gibbs listening in on an encrypted cell phone. "Don't know boss," Tony said, finishing his report." I didn't really pick up anything, except…." He frowned as he tried to place what had been bugging him all night.

"What, DiNozzo?" Gibbs demanded. Tony looked at Ziva, raising his eyebrows.

"Nothing, really Gibbs. It's just that some of the talk seemed a little strange. Especially among the men. Almost like a, um, I can't think of the word I am looking for," and her voice trailed off.

"That's it!" Tony exclaimed. "It's like some of them were talking in some kind of code. We need to find out more, figure it out." The discussion went on far into the night, before Tony and Ziva headed for bed.

Ziva was getting closer and closer to inviting Tony to share her sleeping arrangements, and indeed, when they weren't under direct surveillance by Gibbs or one of the other NCIS agents, they talked freely about everything. It was obvious to both of them that their relationship was fast moving toward something much, much more serious than partners or mere friendship. Ziva wondered how long before one of them finally gave in.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Five days later, she wished she had told Tony her feelings. Coming home in the early afternoon from yet another round of bridge with her new "friends," she was shocked to find Tony sprawled on the couch. That he had been beaten was obvious. That he was trying to downplay it was equally obvious. What wasn't obvious was why there were three other Naval Officers standing around him.

"Mrs. Rodgers?" one of them turned toward her as she came in, and rushed to Tony's side. "I'm afraid your husband has been involved in a little incident."


	4. Chapter 4  Let The Beatings Begin

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS. I make no money from any of this, but I do like to pretend I do.**

_A/N: I appreciate all the reviews, and the alerts, etc. I especially appreciate the constructive reviews with good ideas. To "Project 0" – thanks for the correction on how to spell McLean and also for the excellent suggestion of where to station Tony while he is undercover. Because of the logistics you suggested, I moved him from Norfolk to Naval Support Activity (NSA) in Annapolis. And thanks to DarkRose2006 for pointing out that the Emerald Ash __**Borer **__is actually an insect – it is the Emerald Ash that is the tree! _

_**I went back through and re-read all three chapters, made some minor changes/ corrections, and have reposted them. It isn't necessary to re-read then, but I did want them to be correct.**_

_**On that note – if anyone is interested in being my Beta Reader, I would love to talk to you. I do like to be accurate and post my stories with as few errors as possible. **_

_Shout out to my reviewers: Misspalmer, ForeignMusicLyrics, 7Seven7, NCIS Connection, Jazz248, DarkRose2006, DiN022, earanemith, Project 0, NazChick, AirStriker, Ncisfan with Tivafever, Xena101, Leiah, aquasm, and Aunt Jo. If I missed any of you, my deepest apologies._

**And now, on to Chapter Four.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Four**

"**Let The Beatings Begin"**

Ziva knelt by Tony's side as he tried to sit up on the couch. "Tony, what happened?" She asked. Her training kicked in, allowing her to stay in character, when what she really wanted to do was physically lash out at the men standing around her "husband."

Tony looked first at the other three officers in his living room before responding. "Ah, hon, it's nothing really. Just a little dust up at the Officer's Club today."

"That's right, Mrs. Rodgers. I'm Commander Tillot and I work on the other side of the building from Tony, 'er, your husband here." The rank showing on his collar put him equal with Tony's, although Tony's cover gave him a bit more seniority.

Tony reached out with his right hand for Ziva. His left was clutched around his rib cage. "Help me up, will ya?" His smile was strained, but aimed at the three officers hovering around them. "These clowns are acting like I just got hit by a truck or something."

Ziva obligingly helped Tony sit up and noticed he didn't even wince. But she knew him well enough to tell he was in considerable pain. For whatever reason, it was important to him to act nonchalant, and she decided to go along with it. "So, what was this little 'dust up' all about? Do you need a doctor, dear?"

"No, no doctor." Tony responded rather abruptly before any of the other officers could. "NSA's medic checked me over, I'm fine."

Tillot seemed to be the spokesman for the group. "Tony was just coming out of the Officer's Club after lunch. There were a few enlisted men who had decided to check it out. That's just not done, and your husband came to our defense while we 'convinced' them they weren't welcome."

"Lt. Commander Wilcox, Ma'am." One of the other officers stuck his hand out. Ziva took it and shook it firmly. Wilcox nodded toward Tony with his head. "He's a good man to have in a fight. One of those idiots had boxing skills."

The third officer was the quietest. Tony glanced at Ziva, then still holding her hand, hauled himself to his feet. "Ziva, honey, I want you to meet Captain Hannah. James Hannah, my wife, Ziva." Tony let go of her hand and slipped his right arm around her shoulders, giving her a little squeeze.

Ziva took the hint. Extending her hand, she smiled her best smile. "Ziva Rodgers, Sir. Very nice to meet you. Thank you for seeing my husband home safely."

Captain Hannah looked Ziva up and down, and then suddenly cracked a wide smile. "Well, Mrs. Rodgers, it was our pleasure. As Wilcox said, he's a good man. Yes, I think he'll prove to be a very good man." Turning toward Tony, he placed his hand on the younger man's shoulder. "If you are sure, Tony, that you don't need further medical treatment?

Tony shook his head. "No sir, I'm fine. And Ziva here will give me all the comfort I need, won't you sweetheart?" It was only the warning look in Tony's eyes that kept Ziva from elbowing him sharply in the ribs at that comment; that and the fact she was pretty sure his ribs were already in bad shape. Instead, she smiled sweetly, offered their "guests" something to drink, and then politely escorted them to the door when they declined.

Captain Hannah turned at the door and gave Tony a measured look. "Now listen, son. You stay home tomorrow and rest up. You can be there all the earlier on Thursday. Understand? I'll clear it with your boss." Tony, who was doing his best not to sink into an undignified heap onto the couch, nodded. "Whatever you say, sir."

As soon as the door closed behind them, Ziva whirled around, questions written all over her face. Tony held up one hand, and slowly sank back onto the couch, laying his head on the head rest. Patting the seat beside him, he looked around the room, pointedly, and then tapped his ear.

Understand dawned quickly. Ziva realized she had no idea how long the three men had been there, alone with Tony before she'd arrived. He seemed to be fairly sure there were listening devices somewhere in the room. She went to the couch and sat beside him. Playing the concerned wife didn't seem as difficult as she once thought it might be. Thinking briefly of how she would sound to both Gibbs, who she knew was listening, and to anyone else who might be listening, she phrased her words carefully.

"Tony, what happened? Why did you get in the middle of a fight? You could have been seriously hurt. Now let me see how bad it is." She nodded at him, pointing at her own ears to let him know she'd understood his earlier silent message. Early on in the workup of their undercover persona's, it had been decided they would both be as "in character" as was possible. Undercover work was much easier when you could act like yourself, for the most part.

Tony had discovered that fact much to his detriment when he had spent so much time undercover working with Director Shepherd, "pretending" to be Jeanne's boyfriend. Staying in character had actually allowed him to fall in love with her; at least it had felt like love. Now that he had spent so much time with Ziva, especially after she had gone missing in Africa and he had rescued her, he questioned whether he had ever truly loved Jeanne. He knew he certainly did not feel about her like he did about Ziva. Jeanne had taught him he was capable of deep feelings. Ziva had taught him how deep those feelings could really go.

While she was talking, Ziva had been busy. She had loosened his tie and was now unbuttoning his shirt. "Hey baby," he smiled at her, in his most sexy way, "I know you like to take my clothes off, but maybe you should wait until we get in the bedroom."

While designed to get a rise out of Ziva, he also knew their bedroom was safe, since none of the officers had left the living area. And their bedroom had jamming devices already installed.

"Tony, be serious." Ziva responded. "But, perhaps it would be better to get you where you can lie down. Here, let me help you." Nodding again to indicate her understanding, she helped him up. He grunted slightly and turned pale at the effort, a sweat breaking out on his upper lip.

Moving slowly, they made their way into the safe zone. Ziva pushed him gently down on the bed, helping him lean against the headboard. She finished unbuttoning his shirt and tried not to gasp as the damage was revealed.

"All right Tony, now what really happened? Do I need to call Ducky?"

And in their ear pieces they both heard Gibb's voice, sounding none too happy. "DiNozzo! What the hell is going on? Call me, now!"

Tony just sighed and picked up the secure phone, dialed the encrypted number and put it on speaker. "Well, boss. What is going on is I think we're a lot closer to figuring out what's going on. Ouch!" That comment was directed at Ziva as she probed his bruised ribs.

"I'm sending Ducky. Now." Gibbs voice brooked no argument. But Tony, being Tony, argued. "Negative, boss. I think our house is being watched. I'm starting to figure this out and we don't want to blow it now. Watch it, Ziva!"

"Report, David. How badly is he injured? I'll pull both of you out of there tonight if I need to." Never known for his patience, Gibbs was in danger of losing his completely.

Ziva had been carefully checking Tony out. Now that they were away from the prying eyes of the other officers, his penchant for playing up his injuries was coming out. Every time Ziva poked him somewhere he gave a pitiful little yelp of pain. Only Ziva had realized that when he did that he was actually trying to downplay his injuries. By complaining loudly, he was usually ignored. She had figured this out some time ago.

"Gibbs, I believe he has at least 3 cracked ribs and maybe one broken. He's also going to have a rather spectacular shiner. And he is developing bruises everywhere." Tony glared at her. "Tattle tale!" He responded.

Ducky's anxious voice was the next one they heard. "Anthony, I'm concerned about these injuries. With your history you know you are at greater risk for pneumonia than most. I really think you should be examined at a hospital."

Tony swatted Ziva's hand away as she tried to wipe the dried blood from beneath his left eye. "No, Ducky. Not going to happen. Gibbs, listen. The attack today was deliberate. I've been hanging around with a certain group of guys. Two of them live in our neighborhood, Lt. Commander Hutton and Commander Famad. They were the ones Ziva and I heard at the BBQ last week, the ones that seemed to be talking in some sort of code."

"Hold still Tony." Ziva's voice over rode his. "I want to see how bad this cut is."

"Damn it you two!" Gibb's frustration came through loud and clear. "You'd better give me a real report or I WILL be there in 10 minutes, mission or no mission."

Tony looked at Ziva and grinned. "Well, 'Hon' – I think we've ticked dear old Dad off." Ziva just rolled her eyes and continued cleaning the cut beneath Tony's eye.

"DiNozzo!"

"Um, yeah boss. As I was saying, I've made it a point to hang out with these guys. I even dropped a few of the kind of code phrases we picked up on."

"What kind of phrases?" Gibbs voice was marginally calmer. "Well, I said something like 'bagging one of those would be worth a lot.' I was looking at a real pretty ensign when I said it. Just stuff like that. You know, things that make my skin crawl. But it seemed to work. It's why I ended up taking a beating."

A silence, followed by a long suffering sigh came through next. "You want to explain that, DiNozzo?"

Ziva cocked her head slightly, deciding the cut under Tony's eye didn't require stitches, though he was going to have one hell of a headache. "Yes, 'dear," I'd like to hear the answer to that myself."

Tony managed to pull himself up a little in the bed, wincing as the movement shifted his broken rib. "Well, this morning I was approached by Tillot, one of the three goons that brought me home. Tillot lives about four streets over and he asked me point blank if I knew about the club. I acted like I did. You know, sometimes bluffing works pretty well. He wanted to know how I knew and I told him I'd picked some stuff up at the BBQ; then just nosed around. Told him I'd been involved in something similar in Everett. Mentioned that was why I'd gotten a transfer sudden like. Told him things had gotten too hot and I'd had to get out of there, but was looking for similar action."

Ziva had stepped into the bathroom and came out with a couple of ace bandages. "Hold still, Tony. I'm going to wrap your ribs. And take these Tylenol, or you'll get no sleep tonight. I'm not listening to you moan all night."

Tony grinned and mouthed back at her, "Why not? I'd love to listen to you moan all night. Ouch!" That was followed by the slap she delivered to his arm.

Still grinning, Tony continued his report. "Anyway, Tillot told me to wait, said he'd be back. He came back with the other two officers, Hannah and Wilcox, as well as one of the other guys I'd been hanging out with earlier, Famad. Captain Hannah seems to be the one in charge. He asked me how I'd heard about their club. I just looked at Famad, and he nodded. Then he asked me how the group I'd been involved with in Everett operated. I told him I wasn't talking until I knew for sure what I was getting into. That's when things got a little rough."

Tony stopped and held his breath as Ziva wrapped his ribs. He obediently took the two extra strength pills she held out with a full glass of water. Leaning back against the pillows Ziva helpfully put behind him he smiled his thanks.

"Captain Hannah said anyone who joined their club had to prove they were tough enough. He told me to meet them out behind the tennis courts at the O Club, at 1300. Said they had a little test for me and if I passed, I'd be contacted. If I didn't pass, I'd probably be dead. Sounded like fun to me, so I told him I'd be there."

Gibbs voice was quieter. "You have a strange idea of fun, DiNozzo. I take it the test was the beating they gave you?"

Tony nodded, then realizing his boss couldn't hear that, went on. "Yeah. When I showed up, Famad, Tillot and Hutton were there. Hutton looked furious. I guess they're supposed to be a little more careful how they use their code phrases. He explained the rules – they were really very simple."

Tony had an annoying habit whenever he was telling a story. He loved the sense of the dramatic so always stopped at the most exciting parts. Of course, that particular habit made Gibbs want to beat his agent himself.

A very quiet, but totally threatening sound came over the phone. "DiNozzo, if the next words out of your mouth don't completely explain what happened; I will come over there and make your little fun this afternoon look like a walk in the park. **Do – I – make – myself – clear!"**

Tony glanced up at Ziva with a slightly subdued look on his face. He stage whispered, "Do you think I pushed him too far?" Ziva glared at him and replied, "I cannot answer for Gibbs, but if you do not finish your explanation, he will not need to come over here. I will take care of it for him."

"Uh, yeah, well, anyway, as I was saying, the rules were simple. Apparently to get into the club you have to show you're tough enough to take it. I was supposed to let them whump up on me and not retaliate. Hutton is the one with boxing experience; he knew just how far to go without putting me in the hospital. But that isn't the worse part boss. The beating I can handle. It's what they expect from me next that I'm gonna hate."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**A/N: I know all of this may be a bit confusing, so here is a short explanation of who everyone is and what part they are playing:**

Commander Tillot – works in the same building as Tony and is the same rank. Likely a "club" member.

Lt. Commander Wilcox – Probably a "club" member, with a rank just below Tony's. Does not work in the same building.

Captain Hannah – Possible leader of "the club". Out ranks Tony, works in the same building and apparently knows Tony's boss.

Lt. Commander Hutton – works in the same building, and was at the BBQ. Rank just below Tony's. Definitely a "club" member. Did not like it that Tony had figured out their code. Does not like Tony.

Commander Famad – Works in the same building, was at the BBQ and is the one Tony talked to the most, dropping his code phrases around. Same rank. Obvious "club" member.

Roy and Leana Jenkins – Ziva is friends with Leana and introduced Tony to her and Roy at the BBQ. Roy works in the same building, and is a Lieutenant. Also unknown is whether or not he is involved in "the club." The Jenkins only appearance so far has been in chapter three.

All of these officers live in the McLean area, though not all live in the immediate neighborhood as Tony and Ziva. I hope this helps keep everything straight.

_**One More A/N: My sincere apologies to all Navy and other Military Personnel. In no way does this story reflect anything negative regarding any of you. I have the utmost respect for all of our fine men and women in the service and each and every one of you is in my prayers, daily. But I need material for my story, and so this time, a few of the Navy Officers have turned out to be bad guys. Hopefully no one takes that personally. **_

_Reviews, as always, are welcome. _


	5. Chap 5  What Have I Gotten Myself Into?

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS. I make no money from any of this, ****but I sure wish I could!**

**Thanks as always for the reviews. Things get a little heated up in this chapter. I hope you enjoy.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Five**

"**What Have I Gotten Myself Into?"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A long suffering sigh came over the phone. "DiNozzo. Why do you do this to me?" Gibbs asked. "Just tell me what you know for sure, and what's going on. No more games, okay?"

Ziva had finished wrapping Tony's ribs and was now acting very wife-like, removing his shoes and getting him an iced tea. As soon as she was sure he was as comfortable as he could be, she carefully settled on the bed next to him, even leaning on his left shoulder a little. Tony smiled into her eyes, enjoying the feel of her next to him. It was at times like these he really could see himself settling down with her. All of Gibb's bad experiences with his marriages has definitely made Tony a little gun-shy of the whole commitment idea himself, and the fact that his own parents hadn't exactly been madly in love, at least not that Tony was every aware of, didn't help either.

But he knew Gibbs had loved Shannon and that his daughter, Kelly, had been the joy of his life. Tony wondered of some of his own fear had to do with the pain he knew Gibbs experienced as a result of their deaths. But he was also beginning to figure out that the love he felt for Ziva was worth any cost, effort or risk on his part. "Living" with her these past several days had filled his life with a happiness he had never experienced before and he wasn't sure was willing to let go of that. No matter what Gibb's rules said.

Snuggling her a little closer, he couldn't stop a contented sigh. But he knew his contentment would be short lived if he didn't respond to Gibbs, and soon.

"Got it boss," he replied. "Like I said, the beating they gave me was just to see if I was tough enough to take it. The next part will be a lot harder. I guess to get into this club, or whatever the hell it is, you also have to prove you can dish it out, as well as take it." Tony closed his eyes and the expression of pain on his face had little to do with his physical injuries.

"What do you have to do, Tony?" Ziva's voice was quiet, but Gibb's was able to pick it up.

"The beating they gave me? I have to give the same to someone else. And Hannah said to make sure I had what it takes, it will be some kid. They'll come up with some scenario, to make it seem legit. I won't know the details and if I ask, it's over. They'll just let me heal up, and then arrange some kind of a fight. The kid will know he can't really defend himself. I'll have to beat the snot out of him, without doing permanent damage. But I have to be convincing, or it's over."

Tony listened to the silence. He absolutely hated this. He knew he was close to getting into the club, he'd been lucky. Or at least he hoped it was luck, that had put him together with Famad and Hutton at the right times to figure the code out. It was either that or they were on to him and would probably kill him first chance they got. But he wasn't going to mention that suspicion. As badly as he hated the thought of having to beat up some kid, the idea of being this close to solving the horrific murders, and not following through was worse.

"DiNozzo." Gibbs voice was actually soft, almost gentle. "You don't have to do this." LeRoy Jethro Gibbs knew his senior agent, better than Tony realized. He knew this would tear him apart. But he also suspected Tony wouldn't budge on his determination to go through with it. And Gibbs couldn't fault him, since he would have made the same decision.

Tony looked at Ziva, loving the support he saw in her eyes. He snaked his arm around her and pulled her a little closer. Just knowing he didn't have to go through with it, and sensing that somehow Gibbs understood what this would do to him, made it all right.

"No, boss. I can't stop now. We're too close." A huge yawn escaped his lips. Tony glanced at the clock; it was almost 1700. "Well, I think I'm gonna take a little nap while my 'wife' whips up something spectacular for my dinner. I mean, come on, what are the advantages to being married if I can't take advantage of her skills now and then, right?" Tony raised his head a little and leered down at her, knowing she would understand the double meaning of that sentence.

"Right, DiNozzo." Gibb's voice let on he was pretty sure he knew what Tony was up to. "Just remember, she's a trained assassin and can kill you in more ways than you can count. If I were you, I wouldn't tick her off."

A brief silence followed, and then Gibb's voice returned. "Get some rest, Tony. And stay home tomorrow, like you were told. Keep me posted."

After the call was finished, Ziva looked up at Tony. "Just what did you have in mind, 'Mr. Rodgers'?" She let her hand trail suggestively down his bare chest, stopping at the top of the ace bandages. "Unfortunately, in the shape you're in right now, I don't think you could handle too many of my … skills." Tony smile; his quirky – light up the world smile – and lowered his lips to hers. "Wanna bet?" And he claimed her in a kiss the belied his current condition. The kiss deepened and would have perhaps lead to more – if when he tightened his grip on her, he didn't also suddenly release her mouth and gasp slightly in pain.

Ziva pulled back, and gently patted his arm. "It is alright, Tony. There will be another time." With that she got up, helped him settle in more comfortably and tucked a light blanket over him. "Now take that nap, and I will fix us something to eat."

When Tony awoke two hours later, it was to the smell of something delicious. For just a second he forgot where he was and what had happened. But as soon as he tried to roll out of bed, the sharp pain in his ribs and the ache all over his body reminded him. Trying not to groan out loud, he caught his breath and managed to swing his legs over the side of the bed. The ice tea he had drunk earlier was letting him know he needed to get to the bathroom and now. As soon as his head stopped swimming, he used his right arm to brace himself on the night stand and managed to get to his feet. Hoping he wouldn't fall over, he put one foot in front of the other and managed to make it into the bathroom. Realizing he couldn't stay standing much longer, he carefully unbuckled his pants and actually sat down to pee. "Just glad McGee can't see me now," he thought to himself.

He hadn't closed the door and was actually leaning back, eyes closed, so when Ziva entered, and cleared her throat, he almost jumped straight up. For some reason, he found himself profoundly embarrassed. "Ziva!" he exclaimed. "You could give a guy some warning!" Tony felt his face turning red.

Ziva stood with her arms folded and watched in amusement. "But we are 'married' now, dear, do you not remember? Why should I warn you?" Tony just shook his head and growled at her. "Out!" But as she turned to go, he called her back. "Wait – what's that smell? I had no idea you could cook anything that smelled so good." Ziva paused for a moment and allowed a small smile to cross her face. "Well, Tony. If you are successful in getting off that stool you are sitting on, you can come and find out." Turning back, she grinned over her shoulder. "Or do you need my help?" Tony just glared at her and waved her out.

A few minutes later, as he stood and re-buckled his pants, then washed his hands; he wondered if he could make it to the dining room on his own. "Me and my damn pride," he thought to himself. "Gonna keep me from a good meal." But Tony was determined, and eventually he found his way into the dining room where he gratefully collapsed into a chair. The meal spread before him was enough to make him forget all his aches and pains. Ziva had outdone herself and as they ate together, Tony couldn't help but feel that it all just seemed right somehow.

After dinner, though he was exhausted from the continuing pain, he didn't want to go back to bed. So he talked Ziva into putting in one of his DVDs, some old Magnum shows and coerced her into sitting on the couch with him. As the night wore on, and they laughed their way through several episodes, Tony's heart did a double take when Ziva looked up at him, snuggled a little closer and murmured "I could get used to this."

Sometime later in the night, he woke to sharp pain as he tried to shift. They had both drifted off to sleep and Ziva had slid down and was now lying across his mid section. Though he loved the feel of her next to him, he realized he needed to be able to breathe. "Ziva, honey," he said, carefully shaking her shoulder. "Sorry, babe, but I need to breathe." Ziva woke instantly and was shocked that she had slipped into such a deep sleep. She sat up, stretched like a cat, which caused Tony's heart rate to increase dramatically, adding to the pain he as feeling, and then suggested they go to bed.

And just like that, they began sleeping together. Of course, after Tony had taken two more pain pills, this time the night time kind to help him sleep and they were cuddled in bed, he almost laughed outloud. "Not what I had in mind, when I thought of sleeping with Ziva," he whispered in his head. "I wonder what Gibbs would think of this?"

They mutually decided not to mention the change in their sleeping arrangements in their daily reports to Gibbs, but they also kept sharing the same bed. And they both knew that one night soon, they would do more than just snuggle.

_(A/N: A little "Tiva" especially for NCIS Connection)_

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Tony's recovery went quickly. He did take the next day off, and after that returned to his "office," with a bit of trepidation, wondering what his boss would say. However, he was simply greeted with a "Great job, Rodgers, Captain Hannah filled me in. Said you were a big help. Let me know if you need anything." After that, he was left in peace to do his work. Tony found it fascinating that as part of his cover, he actually had to produce some genuine results and that he enjoyed it. He was functioning as an analyst and wrote several reports that were apparently well received. He figured if he ever wanted to leave NCIS, which wasn't likely, maybe he'd have a future as a Naval Officer. However, when he mentioned that to Gibbs during one of his reports, Gibbs snorted and quickly reminded that him he'd have to complete something called "Basic Training" and that at his age, perhaps he'd rather not.

It had been just over two weeks when he was approached again. He'd seen Famad and Hannah a few times in the course of his work, but nothing had been said and he'd observed nothing unusual. Ziva continued to cultivate her friendships with the women in the neighborhood, although in the evenings she told Tony that she might just have to kill someone if she had to play anymore Bridge. Her only real lead so far seemed to be Leana Jenkins. Leana was confiding in her more and more and seemed on the verge of sharing some important information. Ziva was doing her best to cultivate the friendship, encouraging the woman to talk. But so far, she had said nothing that was relative to their case.

Finally, on a Friday morning, Tony was at his desk, finishing one of the reports he'd been working on for some time. He heard a knock and looked up. Lt. Commander Hutton was standing in his doorway, glaring at him. Tony had the distinct feeling this guy did not like him much and had enjoyed delivering the beating a little more than he should have. On the other hand, obviously something was wrong with all of these guys, given what they were suspected of doing. The entire team had been relieved that so far, there had not been another attack. Though Tony had a sinking feeling that was because they were saving something special for him.

Hutton came in and shut the door behind him at Tony's nod. "Are you ready for the next part?" he asked with no preamble. Tony just stared at him for a moment, not wanting to appear too eager. After Hutton began to shift uncomfortably, he nodded for him to sit down. Hutton perched on the edge of a chair and waited.

Tony cocked his head slightly, then smiled; more of a sneer. "Sure, Hutton," he replied, deliberately leaving off his title. "I'm ready. I was born ready." Hutton's return smile could only be described as nasty. "We'll see, Rodgers." He returned the subtle insult. "Captain Hannah wants you to meet your subject tonight. You'll find an envelope in your car with instructions on where to go and when. Come alone, without your cell phone. And Rodgers? If you mess this up, you die. Now, right now is your only chance to back out. After this, you're in. And no one ever gets out. Not alive anyway."

Tony nodded, then looked down at his paperwork, as if he hadn't a care I the world. "You don't need to worry your pretty little head about me. I can take care of myself. I'll be there." And he didn't look up again until he heard the door open, and Hutton's footsteps as he disappeared down the hall. Only then did Tony allow his features to change. "Gods, what have I gotten myself into?"

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_**A/N: Ok, I know. Kind of a short chapter, but hey, at least I updated right away. I'll try to get the next one up in a day or two. **__**And I promise more Tony Whump coming soon. **_


	6. Chapter 6  Boss, I think I Screwed Up

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS**** and I make no money from any of this. **

_**A/N: **__**Thanks as always for the reviews. Some Tony Whump in this chapter for all you bloodthirsty types…**_

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"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Five**

"**Boss, I Think I Screwed Up"**

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Tony waited until quitting time, refraining from going out and checking his car any earlier. He got inside and looked around, vaguely wondering how they had gotten in without setting off the alarm. But then, he figured with all the other illegal stuff they were involved in, breaking into his car wouldn't be too difficult for them.

Looking around in a few likely places, and he found the envelope, a white piece barely protruding from under the floor mat on the passenger side. He almost waited until he got home to open it, wanting to share it with Gibbs, but then decided there was a good chance he was being observed and therefore, and therefore he should go ahead.

Tony read through it, his heart beat picking speed as he did. _"Good thing I read it here."_ Not liking the situation one bit, he nevertheless knew he had to follow the instructions, or risk everything. And by everything, he meant not just the mission, but his and Ziva's lives as well. Reading through it one more time to make sure he had it right, he then opened the glove box, found the lighter, and holding the paper up, burned it in front of his face.

Tony was a very quick study, however, and the words were burned in his mind. He wanted to be able to recite them to Gibbs that night. The note had been short, the instructions simple.

_**You are being watched. Memorize the address on this paper, and then burn it with the lighter you will find in the glove box. Go back to your office and leave your cell phone on your desk. Then get back in your car and drive to the address. You will be given more instructions when you reach your destination. If you attempt to call anyone or make any contact whatsoever, you and your wife will both be killed. **__**Instantly**__**.**_

_**985 W. Firchland Street**_

Tony got out of the car, holding his cell phone in his hand. He walked quickly to his office, unlocked the door and left his phone lying in the middle of his desk. On his way out, he nodded briefly to the person manning the reception desk, noting it wasn't someone he'd seen there before. Usually it was manned by the pretty Ensign he'd made his comment about to Hutton and Famad. He'd never seen it manned by anyone higher in rank than an Ensign before.

"Evening, Lieutenant," Tony smiled briefly. "Forgot something in my office." The Lieutenant raised his head and glanced up as if bored. "Good night, sir," was all he said, but Tony could feel the man's eyes on his back as he left the building. He knew without turning around that as soon as he was out of sight, he would go into his office and check to see that his phone was there. Never mind all the security measures that were supposed to be in place to keep lowly lieutenants out of commander's offices. These guys were obviously very well connected.

Tony returned to his car, knowing Ziva would call Gibbs when he was late. He also knew they'd have no way of tracing where he was. Though his car had a GPS, he was positive it had been turned off. And they wouldn't realize that until it was too late.

Sighing, he checked around and noticed a vehicle in the parking lot a few rows over. He figured that had to be Hutton or Famad, or someone he hadn't identified yet. Tony started the car and entered the address on his GPS, then drove straight to it. It was about five miles from his home, in the opposite direction he normally went. He didn't once cross a road he would have taken on his way home. "_These guys really are good_," he thought to himself. Without knowing where he was going, it would be hard to track his rather non-descript, military issue white sedan on the street cameras, especially since had hadn't even left the parking lot at his normal exit. He figured there was probably no camera at the exit he had to use to get on the right street. And he knew if he deviated from the normal route he should take, he'd lose his chance.

Tony arrived about 25 minutes later; traffic had been light. And he had seen a lot of white military sedans on his trip. He stopped in front of an apartment building with a sign that said:

"**Welcome to Firchland **

**Forest ****Estates"**

**985 W. Firchland Street**

Tony thought their idea of estates and his were slightly different. These were just average apartments, neither particularly run down, nor particularly well kept. Average and normal in every way. He sat in his car for about 10 minutes and then saw Famad walking down the sidewalk toward him. A nod from the man was all he got. Tony nodded back, then got out of the car and fell into step beside him. "So, Commander, what's next?" Tony's instincts were good, and he knew he'd get more out of this man by treating him with respect; while he was much more likely to get a rise out of Hutton showing him nothing but insolence.

Famad didn't even glance at him. "You'll see soon enough. Just hope you know what you're getting into." His shoulders slumped just a little as he said it and Tony's investigative skills picked up his body language. "I take it you didn't?" he asked. Famad looked at him then, and just shook his head. "No talking. Just come on." But Tony knew he'd just picked up a piece of valuable intel. "He doesn't want to do this anymore," he thought. "Good to know. Might be he'll help me if it comes to that."

They walked around behind the apartment complex and Famad held out his hand, directing Tony ahead of him. Tony walked a little further; then rounded a corner. To his amazement, there was a ring laid out, similar to a boxing ring, though amateur in every way. Inside was a kid of about 17, and another man. The kid had his back to Tony, and seemed somewhat intimidated. Outside the ring were Hutton, Lt. Commander Wilcox and Captain Hannah. There were also 2 or 3 other guys Tony didn't recognize. Since no one except himself and Commander Famad were in uniform, he had no way of identifying rank.

Walking directly to Captain Hannah, Tony stuck his hand out, shaking the man's hand. "Glad to be here, Sir. When do I get started?" Tony didn't even glance at the kid in the ring, getting himself into character. The man he was supposed to be wouldn't care at all about him; he would just be interested in using him as a means to an end.

Captain Hannah clapped Tony on the shoulder. "That's what I like to see. Enthusiasm. First though, let's go over the rules, and then you can show us what you're made of." Something in the way the Captain said it made the hair on the back of Tony's neck stand up. He had a terrible feeling he was being set up, but didn't know how yet. Or what to do about it.

"First thing, boy, give me your car keys." Hutton stuck his hand out, daring Tony to refuse. Tony's gut clenched. This was getting worse and worse. But he had to keep going; he was in too deep now. So he sneered back at him, and fished the keys out of this pocket, dropping them into his hand. "Sure, though I can't think why you'd want it. My car isn't anything special. Oh that's right; neither are you; that's why you want my car, isn't it?"

Hutton raised his fist, ready to punch him, but Captain Hannah restrained him, while Famad did the same for Tony, who had taken a step in the other man's direction. "Boys, boys!" Captain Hannah interjected. "None of that. We have to work as a team. Save your fun for other targets, not each other."

"Now, Tony," Captain Hannah effectively steered him away from Hutton by grasping his shoulder again and turning him toward the ring. "The rules really are simple. Normally, we have a new man show us what he's made out of by beating a younger man. Just to make sure he has what it takes. But by now, you must know what our real objective is. We don't like to waste our time with young men when young women offer so much more opportunity, don't you agree?"

Tony felt sick. But he managed to nod and reply enthusiastically. "That's what I hoped, Captain. The stories I could tell you from Everett! Ever hear of the Cokelur case? That beautiful 1st Lieutenant who went missing and was never found? I could tell you where she is." Tony's grin was positively evil.

Captain Hannah nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, I'd heard of that one. So you're saying you were involved in that?" Tony nodded; McGee had done extensive research on such cases all around the Everett, Washington area, where Tony had supposedly been stationed prior to coming to Annapolis. There were no leads, no clues whatsoever regarding a young woman named Emily Cokelur who had been missing for over two years. It had been decided Tony could use it for credibility if he felt it was needed. And right now, Tony believed he needed all the credibility he could get.

Captain Hannah's eyebrows went up. "Interesting. I don't suppose you took pictures?" Tony shook his head, allowing regret to cross his features. "No, I always thought it was stupid to take those kinds of chances. Besides," and he tapped his right temple. "I have all the pictures I'll ever need right here." Again, he managed a sickening smile, as if reliving his time with the missing woman.

Hutton edged in closer. "I still don't like it, Craig." He obviously enjoyed being on a first name basis with the Captain. "We haven't checked him out enough." Craig Hannah looked at Hutton a moment, and then shook his head. "It's okay, Jon, this little test tonight will tell us what we want to know."

Turning back to Tony, he nodded toward the makeshift ring. But though he kept looking at Tony, he spoke to Famad. "Arik, go move Tony's car to the garage." He nodded at Hutton, who tossed the keys to Arik Famad. "You understand, of course, that we can't be too careful. We have a really sweet set-up here and don't want anyone ruining it."

Tony nodded, looking, really looking toward the ring for the first time. What he saw made his heart almost stop. The man who had been standing in front of who Tony had assumed was a young man moved slightly, allowing Tony to see who his intended target was. The face of a very frightened young woman, a girl really, looked back at him.

Most horrifying was the fact there was duct tape over her mouth, and her arm was already bruised from the grip the man in the ring had had on it. Somehow Tony managed to keep shock from registering on his face and turned his look of revulsion into one of anticipation instead. "I get to play with her? I thought you were gonna make me beat up some kid. When do I start?" and Tony looked the girl up and down, wishing there was some way to tell her to run, now that her guard had let her go. But he knew she had no chance. And now that he knew his target was a woman, he could guess what he would be asked to do. And since he couldn't do that, he figured he had no chance either. He just hoped and prayed Ziva figured things out in time to get out of the house, because once he was discovered, they would be after her too. He was certain of that.

Captain Hannah laughed out loud at Tony's remark. "Oh my, you are the anxious one, aren't you? Well, someone will get to play with her, my friend, but it won't be you; not this time." And he nodded at the man in the ring, who took the girl in a firmer grip and then shoved her out of the ring. "No, Tony, your assignment is still the same. I just wanted to see how you'd react to facing a woman."

At that, a young man, about 20 or so stepped into the ring. He didn't look frightened at all, and he nodded toward Tony. "Ready whenever you are." Tony wondered what they had told the kid. He was obviously too young to be an officer, but he was also definitely involved, since he'd seen the girl, and had to have overheard the conversation. Tony glanced at the Captain, and upon receiving a nod, ducked through the ropes and into the ring. He caught a glimpse of the young woman, now sitting huddled on the ground, still guarded by her captor.

Turning his attention to the younger man standing loosely in front of him, he asked, "What's your name kid?"

The kid looked at him with contempt. "It's Jake. But why the hell should that matter to you?" Tony grinned, raised his fist and punched the kid right in the nose. Standing back, watching blood spurt out, he answered. "Oh, I just like to know who I'm beating the daylights out of." Without waiting for a response, he stepped in and followed his first punch with several blows to the kids face and chest. The younger man made little effort to defend himself, so Tony knew he'd been instructed not to put up a fight. What he had to do sickened him, but he knew if he just knocked him out, he wouldn't be very convincing, so he forced himself to knock the kid all over the ring, even kicking him once when he went down. When the kid didn't get up, Tony stopped, knowing that even if Hutton threatened to put a bullet in his head, he couldn't deliver another blow.

And he was lucky. No bullet came to cut him down and Captain Hannah called a halt. "That's enough Tony. You did well, but we don't want you killing him. We'll need him again. You can get down now and come and watch us while we play with little miss Cari over there." Tony climbed back through the ropes, deliberately exiting from the side closest to the young woman. And that is when things fell apart.

Upon hearing the words spoken by the Captain, the woman apparently named Cari, took advantage of the fact her captor had loosened his hold and wasn't paying attention to her; he had been far more interested in what was happening in the ring. They had not bound her hands since she had put up little fight so far. But at that moment, when everyone was still watching Tony and Jake she suddenly stood, darting off into the woods that were behind the apartment complex.

As Tony reacted out of instinct, dashing after her, he had the incongruous thought, "_This must be the forest this place is named for. Doesn't look much like a forest to me._" Indeed, the trees weren't very thick. In one way, this gave Cari a slight advantage; she was obviously a fast runner and was quickly putting distance between herself and her kidnappers. But in another way they hurt her chances since she was too visible. Tony knew he had to get to her first if she was to have any chance at escape.

He sprinted through the trees, calling back over his shoulder, "Don't worry! I'll get her!" He had a fleeting hope they would let him run her down, but no such luck. He heard at least two other men pounding close behind him. Turning up his speed, he was closing in on her when she seemed to suddenly drop out of sight. Tony managed to come to a halt just before plunging off the precipice that suddenly appeared in front of him. Teetering precariously on the edge, he reached out with his left arm and grasped a tree branch to stop his fall. He saw Cari tumble over and over and come to rest just before slamming into a large tree.

As he watched, she slowly picked herself up and glanced around, then up, looking right at him. Tony could hear the other men closing in on him, but he took a chance and waved her away, mouthing the words: "Go! Run, run fast." He was rewarded by two things happening almost as once. He saw comprehension dawn on her face and watched her turn and stumble into the trees, which were much thicker down where she was. And he heard Hutton angrily call out, "I knew it. Rodgers, you're a dead man." Tony turned to face his attacker, saw a gun being pointed at him and made a split second decision. Just as he heard the gun discharge, he threw himself over the rim. His only thought as he fell over the edge was "Boss, I think I screwed up." _(A/N: I loved that line from the episode "Chained," and have just been waiting for an opportunity to use it.)_

He felt a searing pain in his left arm, just above the elbow, but had no time to think about it as he plunged head over heels down the steep drop. He wasn't quite as lucky as Cari had been and slammed into the same tree she had barely missed. Though he managed to retain his hold on consciousness, he was momentarily stunned. He lay still, feeling as if time had stopped.

A moment later, he heard voices far above him. Turning his eyes, he saw Famad and Hutton peering over the edge and knew they were discussing his fate. But try as he might, he could not make out their words. Neither could he make himself move. As he watched Famad raise his gun, and saw him point it directly at him, it was as if he was observing a horror movie in slow motion. Tony knew he was dead and his thoughts turned immediately to Ziva. Time seemed to slow; hanging somewhere between the sound of the gunshot and the impact of the bullet he knew would take his life as he relived their time together last night.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

They had been cuddled up in bed, both a little sleepy but not ready to quite go to sleep. "Tony?" Ziva's voice sounded wonderful him, as she spoke from her place next to him, with her head on his shoulder. "How will I know if I love you?" At first he thought she might be teasing, they had been having a discussion about love over dinner, but in terms that were general, rather than specific to each other. But as her body tensed slightly, he realized she was serious. He took his time before answering her.

"Well, I can't decide that for you. But I can tell you how I feel about you. I've known for some time now; at least since Africa that I couldn't, or didn't want to live without you. Since then, it has become more than that. Ziva, honey, I love you. I know I will always love you. But you'll have to make your mind up how you feel about me on your own." When she didn't answer right away, Tony gently stroked her back, entangling his fingers in her hair. He loved playing with her hair.

Finally she heaved a sigh. "But Tony, even if you love me now, how can you know you always will? What if I do something and you 'unlove' me? " Tony smiled in the darkness. Leave it to Ziva to come up with a word like "unlove." He pulled her close, wrapping both of his arms around her. "Sweetheart; see that's exactly _why_ I love you. You come up with things that make me smile; being with you is what makes me complete. I promise, I will never unlove you. Nothing you could do would ever make that happen." The silence continued for awhile, the Ziva reached up and kissed him. "Good night Tony. I will think about this." She had sighed and they had both drifted off to sleep.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

These thoughts floated like sweet honey through Tony's mind, making him wish desperately this could end differently than he expected it to. At the last possible second, he felt energy surge through him and he tried to throw himself out of the path of the bullet. But he had waited too long to react. Even as he rolled toward the tree line, he felt the bullet slam into his shoulder. He reacted with shock to the impact, and his momentum carried him a few feet further, then he came to a stop, flat on his back. His eyes were open and unblinking and he saw Famad raise his gun again, saw Hutton nod and step back, then heard 3 more shots fired. To his shock, none of them hit him and he saw Famad nod his head ever so slightly at him. Hutton came back and somehow Tony knew Famad had just given him a chance at life. He had the presence of mind to lie perfectly still and keep his eyes wide open. Hutton watched him for what seemed an eternity. Just when he wasn't sure he could keep his eyes open any longer, Hutton finally slapped Famad on the shoulder and both of them stepped back.

Tony's eyes slid shut, pain overtaking him. At the edge of awareness he knew there was something he needed to do; something he had to find out but he couldn't make his mind focus on what it was. Just as he was ready to give in to the pull of darkness that kept threatening to over take him, he heard a woman's voice from somewhere to his right.

"Mister? Mister. Are you alive?"

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_A/N: Well, what did you all think? I enjoyed this chapter, although it did not go where I thought it was going to. Please let me know what you thought, and I'll try to get another chapter up in a few days. Thanks for reading.__ Suggestions and all comments are welcome. _


	7. Chapter 7 He's Got My Six

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS and I make no money from any of this.**

**Thanks as always for the reviews. I think I**** may be wrapping this up in a chapter or two. **

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"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Seven**

"**He's Got My Six"**

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Ziva David paced around the living room one more time. Tony had not come home and had not called. He was only 10 minutes late, but it was very unlike him not to check in, and she hadn't heard from him since that morning. That wasn't unusual, normally he didn't check in unless he was going to be late. Deciding she didn't care if he thought she was acting like a worried wife, she called him.

"_I am going to give him a piece of my mind_," she thought, as she waited for him to pick up the phone. But it rang 5 times, and then went to voice mail. Thinking maybe he had forgotten to engage his Bluetooth, she waited a few minutes and tried again. Nothing. Same thing; straight to voice mail. Now she was past angry and getting really worried. Ok, still angry too. He knew better than this. On an undercover mission, where so much could go wrong so easily, he knew better than to be out of contact.

That is when her runaway thoughts stopped. Tony did know better. He was very experienced at undercover ops and he certainly knew he was supposed to check in if anything was out of the ordinary, such as being late. There was absolutely no reason for him not to call. None at all – unless he was in trouble. She knew she had to report this, immediately.

Ziva called Gibbs. "Gibbs, Tony is late. I cannot reach him. He would not do this to us. Something is wrong."

Gibbs didn't hesitate. Instructing her to continue to try and reach DiNozzo, he immediately called Special Agent Timothy McGee. "McGee," his voice conveyed his concern over the phone lines. "I want you to get down to Abby's lab and find DiNozzo through that GPS gizmo thing you two put in his car. He hasn't checked in."

Tim felt immediate concern for his partner and friend. "On it boss." He was standing and hurrying to Abby's lab before the call was over. Quickly updating the gothic forensic scientist, he watched as she immediately turned the appropriate computer on. Together they pulled up the program that tracked Tony's car and turned on the system. After watching it come up and go live, Abby turned to him. "Oh Timmy, this is so not good. Not good at all. Who's going to tell Gibbs?"

Tim had no desire to let their boss know that the GPS "gizmo" as Gibbs referred to it, was not working. "Let's see if we can't figure something else out first. Try the cameras in the parking lot. They should at least tell us when he left and if he was alone." Some fancy keyboarding took place as the two hunched over the keys and typed fast and furiously, in some kind of weird synchronic way that was mesmerizing to anyone watching. Together they brought the cameras in question on line. Peering closely at the screen, Abby scrunched her face up. "Look Timmy! There's Tony. Let's see, the time is 1705, so right when he's supposed to get off work."

They watched and saw Tony get in his car, sit there a minute, then get back out and go back into the building. A few minutes later, he came back out, got back in his car and drove off. And disappeared from the grid.

"Oh oh." McGee's voice was pitched about an octave lower than normal. "You are right, this is so not good." With a heavy sigh, he picked up his phone and called in his report to Gibbs.

"McGee, you head to Annapolis now. Go to Tony's office, look around, and see if you can figure anything out. Abby, check that tape over in detail. Find me something to go on." Gibbs voice was gruff and demanding, and they knew he was worried.

"Ah, sure boss," Tim replied, already heading out the door. "Where will you be?" He waved at Abby and blew her a kiss, mouthing the words, "Don't worry," as he got into the elevator. Abby watched him go, and then turned back to her computer screen. "Right. I'm going to find you Tony. You can't hide from me. No siree, I'll find you." As she called up the program she intended to use to scrutinize the tapes from the security cameras, she reached over and grabbed her hippo, Bert, and gave him a squeeze. Remembering how the little fart sound always made Tony smile, she did it one more time, then resolutely put him back and glaring at the computer, started looking.

Gibbs' voice came through loud and clear in McGee's phone. "I'm headed over to the house. I'm getting David out of there. I don't like how this feels. Check in with me when you get to Annapolis."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Ziva paced some more, waiting for Gibbs to get there. She was not worried about herself, but her gut told her Tony was in trouble. Especially after all he had said the night before; he would not leave her wondering like this. A short 30 minutes later, Gibb's car came screeching up to the driveway. Slamming the door, he raced up the walk, and Ziva met him in the doorway. "Get your things David, you're coming with me. This undercover op is over." Not wasting anytime in arguing, Ziva grabbed up a backpack. "I'm already packed. Let's go find Tony."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tony DiNozzo, the object of all the frenzy from the rest of team turned his head ever so slightly when he heard a woman's voice coming from somewhere to his right.

"Yeah," he croaked the word out. "I'm alive." And he managed to shift into a sitting position, moving so his back rested against the tree. "But I don't know for how long." At that the young woman, Cari, came hesitantly to his side.

"Who are you? What's going on?" Tony tried a reassuring grin, but the effect was lost somewhat when it turned into a gasp of pain. "Ah, I'm Tony. Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. NCIS. And you are?" He reached up with his right hand and placed it over the bullet wound in his shoulder, trying to stop the flow of blood that had increased when he'd sat up.

At this the woman knelt down beside him. "I'm Ensign Cari Castillas. And you're in luck. I'm a medic. Let me help you." Tony was glad she wasn't going to panic, but didn't figure they had a lot of time. "Yeah, Cari, I will. Let you help me, that is. But first, I think we'd better get under these trees, in some kind of cover. They're bound to come looking for you, and Hutton will want to make sure I'm dead. We need to get as far away from here as possible." The speech nearly exhausted him, but he fought it back. Looking up at her, trying to measure her frame of mind, he reached out with a shaky and bloody hand, alarmed when the blood flow from his shoulder increased as soon as he released his hold. "Help me up." She sat back on her heels, considering, then reached down and grasped him by his arm. Standing up, she steadied Tony as he made it to his feet. He swayed for moment but told himself he was not going to pass out. "_DiNozzo's don't pass out_," he murmured quietly, under his breath.

"What did you say?" the young woman turned and looked at him. "Ah, never mind," he shook his head. "Let's just get out of here." Stumbling a little, and leaning on the woman, they managed to get under the cover of some thicker trees. Tony did his best to staunch the bleeding, not wanting to leave a trail. He didn't realize he was also bleeding from his arm, which had been hit just as he went over the edge of the ravine. The pain in his shoulder was all consuming and he didn't even notice his other injuries at that point.

After they had half walked and half run for what seemed like forever to Tony, he suddenly saw a black wall coming to meet him. The next thing he felt was a falling sensation and he called out briefly, just before it all went black. "Get out of here. You can't let them find you."

Ensign Cari Castillas looked at the man who now lay in a heap at her feet. "Like I'm going to leave you, after you've almost gotten killed, trying to save me."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

McGee arrived at the parking lot outside of NSA and parked near where he knew Tony usually did. Glancing around, he saw nothing unusual. Going to the front door, he entered, and noted the place was fairly quiet. It was never completely deserted, due to the nature of the work that was done there.

McGee took a look around and spotted a Lieutenant sitting at the desk in the reception area. Striding over he pulled his credentials and held them up. "NCIS," he barked in a very Gibbs-like voice. Tim had no idea whether the young man in front of him was involved in their case or not, but he was simply in a terrible mood. Traffic had been awful and he'd heard from Gibbs several times on his way over, wanting to know why he wasn't there yet. Gibbs had informed him that he and Ziva were en-route and by the time they arrived, he expected that McGee would have uncovered something useful. Since they were coming from a much closer location, he figured they be arriving any minute. And he had no intention of further irritating or disappointing an already pissed-off Gibbs.

"Show me to Commander Rodgers' office." Tim glared at the hapless young Lieutenant who seemed very startled to suddenly be confronted with an NCIS agent who was apparently angry at him.

"Ah, of course, sir, right away," he stammered, glancing around and reaching into his desk drawer. "Hold it!" McGee ordered, drawing his weapon and training it on the now frightened man. "Wait. Wait! I'm just getting the keys," and the Lieutenant withdrew his hands, holding up a rather impressive set of keys. "Th.. the..this one is the right one, it will let you into the Commander's office." He held the keys out in a shaky hand. "Do you want me to come with you?" he asked, hoping the answer was no.

McGee glared at him again. "Since I don't know where the Commander's office is, YES, I want you to come with me. Now move!" The Lieutenant scurried around the desk and led a very intimidating McGee down the hall, and the through the corridors until they reached Tony's office. McGee dismissed him with a wave of his head, inserting the key into the lock. "Oh, and Lieutenant?" The man turned and gulped, "Yes?" There will be two more NCIS Agents coming soon. Show them here, understand?" The man nodded and hurried away.

Tim carefully entered the office, weapon still drawn, but it was a small office and a quick glance around revealed no one hiding anywhere. Holstering his weapon, he looked around trying to see if there was anything unusual. Just as he was about to give up, he spotted Tony's cell phone on the desk. "_That's Tony's phone_," he spoke the words quietly to himself. "_That shouldn't still be there._" Tim almost jumped out of this skin and gave a very Tony-like yelp when he felt a hand slap him upside the back of his head and heard a very dry, irritated voice mutter, "Ya think, McGee? Find anything else?"

"Ah, no, boss, I didn't. Um, not yet, that is, I just got here." A look at Gibbs and McGee ducked his head. "Ah, sorry boss, Where's Ziva? She okay?" Gibbs looked around, nodding for Tim to pick the phone up, after he had donned his gloves. He bagged it in an evidence bag. "She's fine, Tim. Out front, questioning the Lieutenant."

At that moment, Tim's phone rang. Glancing at it, he said, "Its Abby," and put it on speaker. "Abby, you're on speaker. Gibbs is here too."

Abby's very excited voice came over the like. "GibbsGibbsGibbs! I found him. I mean I found where his car is. At least I think I found him. Or rather, his car. I haven't seen him, well, only for a minute and he seemed fine, but that other guy didn't look too cool. I mean, he wasn't hurting Tony and Tony looked ok, but I don't like it anyway. I don't think I like Tony hanging out with these kinds of people at all. He needs to hang out more with you Timmy, you got that?"

An excited Abby could almost be worse than no Abby at all. Gibbs knew he needed to calm her down, keep her focused. "Abby!" his voice was deliberately soft, but almost menacing. "Calm down. Tell. Me. What. You. Saw. NOW!"

A huge sigh, followed by what sounded like a fart sounded through the phone line just as Ziva entered the room. At her raised eyebrows, Tim mouthed the words "Abby. And Bert," as he nodded at the phone in his hand.

Abby's voice came back on. "Right Gibbs. I'm calm now. Here's what I saw. It took me forever, but by checking out all the possible ways Tony could have left the parking lot, I finally saw his car leaving by the SW exit. Okay, I didn't see it, but what I didn't see was it leaving by any other exit. So I deduced it left that way and I started checking all the cameras that were on any streets anywhere near that exit. It took forever, but I finally spotted his car. Gibbs, there a lot of cars that look the same. The navy has no imagination, you know?"

"Get on with it Abs," Gibbs was fast losing patience. "Right. Getting on with it, Sir!" They all heard her heels click together and could imagine her saluting. "Anyway, I checked every single boring white sedan I saw and finally found the one with Tony's plates. Well, his fake military ID plates, anyway. And it took a lot of doing, but I eventually found out where he went. Do you want to know where, Gibbs?"

A huge sigh escaped Gibb's lips. Ziva answered before he could yell at her. "Yes, Abby, we want to know, very much so."

"Ziva!" Another excited outburst from Abby followed. "You're there too! Good, Tony will be fine with all of you looking for him. I mean, he has to be fine. He's Tony. He's indestructible, right? The plague couldn't take him, and being on that horrible ship for so long when Vance sent him away couldn't take him, and Jeanne couldn't take him away from us, so this won't either, will it? He's like the brother I never had and I couldn't bear to lose him."

Ziva hid a slight smile, and answered. "Yes, Abby, Tony will be fine. But this will go much faster if you will please tell us what you found."

"Right. So, I was able to finally find his car again after he parked. He was parked right in front of some apartments. The Firchland Forest Estates, address 985 W. Firchland." Abby could hear the team heading out. "But GibbsGibbsGibbs. Wait. There's more." She waited until Gibbs voice came back on. "I'm waiting, Abby."

"I saw Tony's car there, saw a man walk by and Tony got out and they disappeared from sight. About 20 minutes later, the same man came back and moved Tony's car. I couldn't find it again. Gibbs, what did they do to Tony?"

"That's what we're going to go find out Abs. Good job. Let me know if you find anything else." Just like that the phone went dead. Gibbs motioned for McGee and Ziva to continue. "We'll take my car. Ziva, did the Lieutenant know anything?"

Ziva shook her head."No, he just came on duty about 30 minutes ago. Said there was nothing out of the ordinary. Said he likes Commander Rodgers and hopes everything is ok."

The three of them walked quickly to Gibbs car and got in. McGee had already plugged the address Abby had provided into the GPS on his phone and gave Gibbs direction. When they pulled up on front of the apartment complex about 15 minutes later, Gibbs sent McGee around one side and said "David, with me." They all scouted around and met in the back, staring in open mouth astonishment at the sight that met their eyes. A boxing ring was the last thing they had expected to find. Further search revealed Tony's car, locked in a garage. Ziva found it when she looked through some windows and Tim broke the door down. Nothing in the car seemed out of place, but there was absolutely no indication what had happened and where Tony was now.

Gibbs slammed the door to Tony's car in frustration. "I don't like this, not one bit. Tony's in trouble, I can feel it. And I have no idea where he is."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Cari gently turned Tony over onto his back, carefully straightening out his legs and arms. She felt along all his limbs, looking for more injuries and frowned when she found his left arm was bloody. Pulling his shirt open, she saw first the ugly wound in his shoulder, just below the collar bone. Gently probing, she determined the collar bone was likely broken as well. Continuing her exam, she found another bullet wound, this one in his left arm, just above the elbow. Looking back over the way they'd come, she could just make out a blood trail in the darkening light.

"This is not good, Agent DiNozzo. Not good for either one of us. What do I do now?" She answered her own question by finishing her quick assessment, and discovered he had some healing fractures of his ribs on the right side. Or they had been healing until his untimely tumble down the steep ravine. Now she could find at least two were cracked and maybe two more broken. She didn't find any other obvious wounds, but could not rule out internal injuries.

Cari was a good medic. She quickly evaluated his various injuries and found no exit wound for the bullet in his shoulder, but did see that the one to his arm was a through and through. "_And that explains the blood trail_," she thought. His shoulder wound was oozing blood but he had managed to staunch most of it; however his arm had been bleeding steadily the entire time they had been running. _"And it also explains why he passed out." _Cari realized she was talking to herself, but it made her feel a little less alone somehow.

Then she got busy. She felt a little self conscious unbuckling his belt, but she wasn't wearing one, and she knew she needed to get a tourniquet on his arm sooner rather than later. Tony moaned slightly as she eased the belt from around his waist and placed it above the wound, pulling it tight and twisting it into a knot. She was relieved to see the flow of blood slow to little more than a trickle. She was even more relieved when the movement seemed to bring him around to wakefulness. The light was getting dimmer and dimmer and she wished she thought that would keep their tormenters from searching for her, but she knew it wouldn't. Cari desperately wanted to just run and get as far away as she could, get herself to safety. But she knew she couldn't do that, for if she did, the man just coming to would likely die. He might die anyway, but not if she could help it.

Tony groaned a little as his eyes opened. "Hey," he smiled weakly at her. "What 'er you still doing here? Shouldn't you be running or hiding or something?" Tony pushed himself up on his right elbow, but then stopped as the pain swamped him. "Man, feels like I got run over by a Mac Truck." Cari helped him sit the rest of the way up and tried to smile. "No, but you have been bleeding all over everything. Why didn't you tell me you'd been hit in the arm, too? I don't want to worry you anymore than you already are, but you left a blood trail."

Tony peered in surprise at his arm, noting the tourniquet. "You do that?" he asked. "I'm sorry, Cari, I didn't feel it. Sure do now though." Almost as if by magic, as soon as she pointed it out he felt it throbbing in time with his heart beat. A huge sigh escaped his lips, causing him to wince at the sudden pain in his ribs. "Anything else I need to know about?"

Cari gently reached out and lightly touched his side. "I think you have some broken ribs. You may have done that in the fall, but I can't really tell. The bruises are old, but there are at least one, probably two obvious fractures." Tony took a few more experimental deep breaths, noticing that at least so far his lungs felt ok, though it hurt to breathe deeply. "Oh, that. Well, I had a little dust up with Hutton earlier. They were almost healed when I fell."

Both of them sat in silence for a moment, and then spoke simultaneously. "Let's get a move on." Grinning, Tony nodded, and with her help, got to his feet. "Which way, Tony? Do you have any idea where we are? It's getting pretty dark." Tony glanced around, trying to get his bearings. "What I wouldn't give for McBoyScout right about now," he muttered quietly. Sensing rather than seeing the surprise on the young Ensign's face, he said,"Never mind. Let's head that way and I'll try not to bleed all over everything. We need to get as much distance between us and that trail as possible. Got to give Gibbs, that's my boss, time to find us. Don't worry Cari. He's got my six. He'll find us. He always does."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_A/N: __Okay, that's it for this chapter. Reviews, please. And let me know if you think this is about finished, or if you'd like a little more Tony angst. I could use some suggestions on where to take this next. Thanks everyone. _


	8. Chapter 8 Anytime Now, Boss

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS and I make no money from any of this.**

**A/N: O****k, first of all, so sorry for the long delay. Life just has a way of happening, this time in the form of a fairly serious medical problem for my husband. I have been focused on that, but now find myself in need of a little distraction while we await test results. **

**That's the bad news.**** The good news is this story is finished. I'll be doing final edits on the remaining chapters and will try to post one every couple of days. **

**Thanks so much for your reviews, they encourage me to post faster. Now, on to chapter 8.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Eight**

"**Anytime Now, Boss"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

NCIS Agent in Charge, LeRoy Jethro Gibbs wasn't one to waste time. Though he had no real idea what had happened to his agent, he knew standing around worrying about him wasn't going solve anything. He gave orders to spread out and treat the area as a crime scene. "Look for evidence, anything out of the ordinary." When Agent Ziva David raised her eyebrows and looked pointedly at the boxing ring, Gibbs managed a very small grin. "Besides that, I mean. Leave it to Tony to get involved in something this bizarre."

About 20 minutes later, as he was finishing his detailed inspection of the car, he heard Timothy McGee's shout. "Over here, boss. I found something."

"Finally," he heard Ziva's response, and nodded, echoing her sentiments. "What is it, McGee?" he hurried to where the younger Special Agent was waving to them. "Footprints. Lots of them. Looks like a scuffle took place. And look, boss." Pointing at the ground, at the footprints he had marked with numbered signs, he continued. "I'd bet that's a woman's print. It's too small to be a man's. See, here's where the scuffle starts – then her prints lead off – farther and farther apart, like she's running?" They all leaned down and followed the trail McGee had carefully marked out. They could see the woman's prints, then another set that seemed to be purposely shadowing hers, but almost parallel to them, obviously someone with a larger print, and also running. "I'd also bet those are Tony's," Tim added. "I'd recognize his size 12s anywhere." Two or three more sets could be made out, but it was difficult to tell how many. "Seems like maybe DiNozzo was trying to lead us somewhere," Gibbs said.

Ziva hurried ahead, coming to an abrupt halt at the edge of a steep ravine. "Gibbs." She squatted down and pointed. "Looks like another struggle took place here." It was apparent that all the prints led to this point. It was equally obvious that the woman's stopped abruptly, as did the parallel ones. The others were congregated more or less in one place, and it appeared two or three people had stopped, short of going over the ledge.

Squinting carefully at the path the prints had made up to this point, Ziva leaned down to get a closer look at something. Then, her expression grim, she looked up again. "Gibbs. Blood. At least it looks like blood." Wordlessly, Tim crouched down beside her and reached into his vest, removing a q-tip and the bottle of luminal. Spraying the q-tip, he swabbed a bit of the liquid, and closed his eyes when it came back positive. "It's blood all right. How much you want to bet its Tony's?"

Gibbs looked over from where he had been carefully checking the area. Holding up several shell casings, he looked even more grim than usual. "I'm not taking that bet, McGee; since Tony didn't have a sidearm, that's most likely his all right. Damn!"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Ensign Cari Castillas was silently amazed at the strength and stamina the wounded man who was lurching alongside her was exhibiting. She knew he had to be in a great deal of pain, but other than an occasional inadvertent grunt, he had remained quiet, the only sounds being his increasingly labored breathing. He had led them deeper and deeper into the darkening woods, only stopping when a root had tripped him and he'd fallen heavily to the ground. When he had immediately tried to struggle to his feet, she had stopped him.

"Tony, you may not need to rest, but I have to catch my breath." They had been running and walking for at least 30 minutes since she'd applied the tourniquet. "And I need to loosen your belt." Kneeling beside him, she carefully started feeling along his arm, her hands going to the buckle where she had cinched it tight. "I wish I could see better." A quiet scuffling sound, followed by a small beam of light was her reward.

"Rule # 15, or maybe its 19, I can't remember," Tony wheezed out. "Anyway, never let your batteries run out." Smiling a little, Cari shook her head and took the flashlight from him. "I've never met anyone quite like you. Now lay still and let me check you out."

Tony laid his head back, and just managed not to cry out when she loosened the belt. It seemed it had been tight enough to not only slow the flow of blood, but had helped to numb some of the feeling in his arm as well. "_Or maybe that was just the adrenalin" _he thought to himself, closing his eyes and biting his lower lip. Whatever it had been, it had stopped working now, and the pain was screaming along the nerves in his arm, racing along to his shoulder.

"Easy, Cari," he gasped out. Tony was seeing spots before his eyes that had nothing to do with the darkness that was now complete, except for the pinpoint of light. "And hurry. We don't dare keep this light on too long." Cari used the light to examine both of the bullet wounds, and then shined it directly into Tony's eyes. "Hey!" he turned his head and screwed his eyes shut.

"Take it easy, I'm just checking to make sure you don't have a concussion. You seemed pretty wobbly there at the end." Tony submitted to her flicking the light on and off, knowing she was right to check his pupils. "Nah, my head's ok, I just tripped." Cari nodded, "I think you're right. But that doesn't change the fact that you're still bleeding all over everything."

Turning the light off and plunging them into darkness, Tony heard the sound of material being ripped. He was too tired to ask what she was doing; besides, he knew they had to stop the flow of blood. He could tell he was fading in and out, and was not sure how much time had passed, before he felt Cari's hands on his arm again, this time binding the wound firmly, before re-tightening the tourniquet.

"Can you sit up Tony?" she was at his back now, helping him into an upright position. His eyes flew open. "How long was I out?" he managed to mostly cover his grunt of pain with the words. "Not long, only a few minutes. I'm going to try and wrap your shoulder, and put your arm in a sling. It will be a little more comfortable and keep you from dripping so much." She suited action to her words, wrapping what was left of her shirt around his shoulder a few times, before securing it in a tight knot." Silence followed this, until Tony grew a little worried. "Cari? You okay? What's wrong?"

A drawn out sigh was his answer. "I'm sorta out of shirt material. I wanted to make a sling, but," and her voice trailed off. Tony groped outward, his hands coming into contact with the bare skin of her arm. "You shouldn't have done that, Cari. It's going to get cold out here." Even as he spoke, he was pulling his shirttail out of his pants. "But I wouldn't want to waste your efforts. Turn the light on; maybe you can rip some off the bottom of my shirt." She flicked the light on and he caught sight of the young woman, now clad in her pants and a sports bra. Tony refrained from making any ribald comment. He took the flashlight from her with his good hand, and held it while she got a good grip, then managed to tear a strip off the bottom of his shirt. Using it sparingly, she was unable to fashion a sling, but did manage to bind his arm tightly to his chest. "That will have to do, I guess."

Tony nodded his thanks, and flicked the light off again. "Let's rest a bit, and have a listen. If we don't hear anything, we'll head out again." Pulling her next to him, he leaned against the tree. Wishing it was Ziva he was holding, nevertheless, he was grateful for the slight warmth the shivering young woman provided. He was getting desperately cold himself, but knew that was from blood loss more than anything else. With another sigh, he leaned his head back until it contacted the bark behind him. "Anytime now would be good, boss."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gibbs stood up, yanked his cell phone out and called NCIS headquarters. It was well past time he reported to Director Leon Vance what had taken place. And he wanted a full team sent out to do a thorough search of the area. After being assured help was on the way, he placed one more quick call to Abby, updating her on what they had found and instructing her to run the blood sample someone would be bringing to her. They needed to know if it was DiNozzo's, though Gibbs was already sure what they would learn. If anyone could get into this much trouble, it was his Senior Field Agent.

While he had been talking on the phone, Ziva and Tim had gone to the car. They now returned with lights, ropes and a med kit. Gibbs knew they both would want to go on the search for Tony, but also knew one of them needed to remain behind, to secure the scene and give directions both to Abby and to the team that would be arriving within the hour.

He laid his hand on Tim's shoulder. "McGee. You stay here; keep looking for evidence, anything that could help us. And you're going to need to lower Ziva and me down. We'll find him. As soon as the team gets here, you can follow with reinforcements. Got it?" His voice brooked no argument. Tim didn't have to like it, but he knew it made sense. He made short work of tying the rope off to a nearby tree, and then ran it behind him, steadying first Gibbs, then Ziva, as they lowered themselves over the edge.

As soon as they were down safely, Tim started a more thorough search of the area. It seemed obvious no one had gone down after Tony and the woman the way Gibbs and Ziva had, and he hoped that gave them an edge. He somehow knew the bad guys would be looking for them; and he prayed the boss and Ziva would find them first.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Jon Hutton had stepped back in order to better protect his eardrums, and watched as Commander Arik Famad had apparently pumped three more bullets into Rodgers as he lay insensate at the bottom of the ravine. As soon as the ring of the gunshots faded, he looked over the edge again. Watching Rodgers, he waited for a sign of life. But the man lay unmoving and unblinking until finally Hutton clapped Arik on the shoulder. "I think you got him, boy."

Stepping back, he turned toward Captain Hannah who was now joining them. "Rodgers is dead. But the girl ran." Hannah peered over the edge and wasn't quite as sure Tony was dead as Hutton seemed to be, but noting the spreading blood over the fallen man's chest, he finally nodded. "Then we need to find her." Retracing their steps, they quickly returned to the boxing ring area.

"Clean things up." Hannah instructed Wilcox. Turning to the young man Tony had knocked out, he checked him over. "Get over to the apartments. Let our contact know what happened and make sure no one calls 911. You got that?" The kid nodded and took off at a slow jog.

With that Hannah and Famad got into the Captain's car. Hutton quickly slipped into the driver's seat and headed immediately for an area they knew well; one that would take them straight into the woods below. "We'll find her, Craig, and while you and Arik take care of her, I'll go make sure Rodgers is dead. And I'll fix it so no one will ever find him."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_A/N: Sorry this one is a little short, but it was the best breaking point. Review please! And I'll try to post the next chapter tomorrow. Thanks everyone. _


	9. Chapter 9 Damn! You're Not Gibbs

Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS and I make no money from any of this.

_**A/N: I just want to take this opportunity to thank the Fanfiction community for your kindness. I have received a number of private messages regarding my husband's health issues, with promises to pray for us, as well as offers to just listen if I need to talk. Others have offered support within the body of a review. I am overwhelmed with all of your thoughtfulness, and am humbled by your compassion. He is doing well; we are waiting for a procedure next week which will give us more information. Thank you again, so very, very much. **_

Now please enjoy Chapter 9. Warning—a little rough language in this one and a nice fight scene coming up, also death and mayhem will ensue.

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"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Nine**

"**Damn! You're Not Gibbs"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gibbs and Ziva traveled as quickly as they could through the darkening trees. Both held their flashlights in their left hand, their weapons balanced on top. Moving stealthily and in leap-frog style around one another, they advanced from point to point. Neither of them commented on the fact their search was made easier by the rather obvious blood trail. While Ziva was glad to have something to follow, she couldn't help but worry; both about Tony's condition and the fact that if they could follow it so easily, so could the murderers.

Gibbs held up a hand, halting their progress, and leaning down to look at something. Motioning, he indicated Ziva needed to make sure the surrounding area was secure. A quick scout around revealed no one lingering nearby, and Ziva dropped to her knees beside Gibbs, trying to see what held his attention. She almost immediately wished she hadn't.

He had found a pool of blood; mixed in with some bent and broken pieces of twig and grass. It seemed obvious that someone had been laying down in the area, and whoever it was had been bleeding profusely. Ziva knew it was most likely Tony, but her heart almost stopped when Gibbs held up his Senior Field Agent's keys. They had blood on them and had been half buried in the debris. "They're Tony's, Ziva. I guess we know for sure who's leaving us this trail."

Ziva bowed her head for moment, resting her hand on the nearby tree. Regaining her composure, she used her flashlight and began scouring the area, looking for any information that might help them. That is when she noticed two slight indentations and examining them closer, she pointed them out to Gibbs. "Look, Gibbs. It looks like someone else was here. Maybe, kneeling by Tony?" Her voice took on a questioning tone. Gibbs added his light and they checked around more thoroughly. After some searching, Gibbs found more foot prints that seemed to lead off deeper into the woods.

He sighed. "It's not going to be easy following these. As much as I hope they got the bleeding stopped, it's a lot harder to follow the trail without all the blood."

"Maybe the woman helped him. At least, he's not alone, if that's the case." Ziva wanted to be believe that; hanging onto any small shred of hope. Gibbs didn't bother to express the rest of his own dark thoughts out loud. If Tony was with one of the female victims, he wouldn't hesitate to put her safety ahead of his. Standing up, he gently took Ziva's arm. "Come on. We need to find them; fast, before any of Tony's other friends do." With that they headed on deeper into the forest, wishing they had better lights, but at the same time, knowing the cover of darkness might be Tony's best chance.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tony had allowed himself to rest for about 10 minutes before his gut started churning. He knew they had been running rather aimlessly, just trying to put distance between the ravine and themselves. But now that he had had a few minutes to actually stop and think, he began to come up with a plan.

"Cari," his voice startled her. "Do you have any idea which direction we might have been running? Other than away from the ravine?" He felt her shake her head, then listened as she spoke. "Not really. I was just so scared; I didn't really pay any attention. I'm not real good at knowing my north from my west, at the best of times." He could hear the regret in her tone.

"Not to worry. But I think we need to think this through now. If we went more or less in a straight line, away from them, then we should have been heading approximately north. I don't know this area all that well, but we need to try and get to a road, then maybe we can hide until someone comes along."

Cari sighed. "But how will we know who is coming along? If we get to a road, that means so can they." Tony knew this was true, but he also didn't much like the idea of being lost in the dark. He felt too much like a sitting duck. He figured Gibbs would be looking for them by now, but didn't know how long it would take him to discover where his car was, and what had happened. Tony knew he was more or less on his own, at least for awhile.

"Yeah, that's right. But we're at a higher risk if we just sit here; especially if those goons know these woods as well as I think they do." Tony's active mind figured they must have some kind of a place, located somewhere within these woods where they took the women. It would make sense, because of their obvious connection to the area. Someone at the Firchland Apartments had to be in on it too, and if that was the case, then this "Torture Club," or whatever the hell it was, must be centered in the area.

"Let's just take it a little more slowly, and keep heading north, as much as we can. If I remember right, there should be some roads in that direction." Tony gathered his strength, and then began the process of hauling himself to his feet.

Just has he managed to stand, he heard a sound he'd been dreading. "Not so fast, Rodgers. We have some unfinished business."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Agent McGee impatiently waited for the other team to arrive. He was not at all surprised to see Ducky and Palmer with them. He was however, a little taken aback to see Abby get out of their medical van. She immediately began setting up some portable equipment, bossing Jimmy around and demanding that her computers be started on backup power. Spotting Tim, she ran to him and threw her arms around him. "Timmy, where is he? Why aren't you looking for him? Give me that sample; I want to prove it's not Tony's blood." And just as quickly, before Tim could respond, she danced out of his reach, snatching the sample out of his hand.

If Tim had been shocked to see Abby, he was stunned when Leon Vance appeared. "Report, Agent McGee." Vance always made Tim feel on edge, as if he was being scrutinized every second.

"Ah, well, ah, Director. We think there was a woman here and somehow she must have escaped. We think Tony went with her, probably tried to rescue her. He may have been hurt," here he lowered his voice, not wanting to alarm Abby any further.

"I know all that McGee. Where are Gibbs and David?" Leon's voice was impatient. "I told Gibbs to wait to start searching until we got here."

"Ah, um. That is, well, they didn't, sir. They didn't wait, I mean." Tim knew there was no point in delaying his report of the obvious. Vance glared at him and shook his head. "Where? Where are they looking?"

Tim motioned with his arm. "I'll show you." And he led his clearly angry Director to the ravine. They were followed closely by Ducky and Jimmy.

"Oh dear. I hope Anthony didn't go over that." Ducky's cultured voice broke the silence. Tim glanced at him and shook his head. "Looks like he probably did, Duck. That's what the evidence is saying." He indicated the trail, marked clearly with the little yellow place holders he had finished putting there while he was waiting for them to arrive.

Taking a breath and squaring his shoulders, Tim turned and faced the Director. "Director, before you ask. Yes, Gibbs and Ziva went over the edge too. I held the rope. It's obvious the Club members had been here, and we're sure they're looking for Tony and the woman. It's imperative that Gibbs and Ziva find him first."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tony stopped, a feeling of dread sweeping over him. "Damn. You're not Gibbs," he murmured.

The sound of Lt. Commander Hutton's voice was absolutely the last thing he had ever wanted to hear again. Realizing that if she was going to have any chance at all, he knew he needed to do whatever was necessary to protect Cari. He gave her a violent shove. "Run!" he shouted, even as he lowered his head and charged directly toward Hutton's voice. He knew her only chance was if he was able to create enough of a diversion for her to get away.

Cari didn't hesitate. Though she hated leaving Tony in the clutches of the men she knew were more evil than anyone she'd ever met, she understood that their only hope was if one of them escaped. And Tony was in no shape to move fast. Darting away, hurrying as fast as she possibly could, she ran until she could no longer hear any sound coming from behind her, and then took a sudden left turn and dropped to the ground. Rolling under a large bush, she squirmed her way deeper and deeper under cover, hoping she wouldn't be discovered, and praying she wouldn't hear a gunshot.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX **

Tony's unexpected charge had had the effect he'd hoped for. Crashing into the Lt. Commander, they had both flown off their feet, and Tony used what little strength he had left to repeatedly slam his right fist into the very startled man's face. With one part of his mind, he heard Cari making good her escape and he decided he would give everything he had to allow her as much time as possible.

Raising his voice, hoping to cover the frantic sounds she was making, he began screaming obscenities at the man he was straddling. "That's for all the rapes! You shit hole!" He followed each cry with another punch, feeling his rage peak. "And that's for killing Erin Kinnett. Damn you. Damn you to hell." Tony managed to keep up the onslaught until his own ears were ringing. He hoped he was killing the man, but knew he was losing momentum way too quickly.

Hutton had been shocked to find that Rodgers was not only alive, but apparently well enough to have traveled a good distance from the ravine. He had gone with Hannah and Famad, first checking their secret location— the cabin where they took the women, making sure it was secure. As Hannah and Famad had headed out to look for Ensign Castilles, he had jogged straight for the area where he'd last seen Rodgers. He intended to put a bullet in the man's head, just for good measure, and then bury him where no one would ever find him. So when he had heard the quiet voices coming from somewhere just to his right, he had been shocked.

Recognizing Rodger's voice, he hadn't been able to contain himself. Now he realized he should have simply snuck up on them and shot him, thus leaving Cari for them to leisurely play with later. But though he was impetuous, and had made a bad decision, Hutton was also strong as an ox. And once the initial shock wore off his own rage began to consume him. Reaching up with both hands, he managed to give Rodgers/Tony a chop in his windpipe. This had the added benefit of shutting the enraged man up, as well as knocking him to one side. Hutton quickly took advantage of the other man's obvious weakened condition and threw him completely off of him. He reached for his gun, intending to kill him on the spot. But to his dismay, his weapon had come out of his belt. He heard Tony scrambling away from him, and followed the sound.

"Not so fast, you traitor." Hutton lunged himself at the man who was trying to escape, kicked him hard in his side, and then knocked him flat on his face. Jumping onto his back and yanking Tony's head up by his hair, he leaned in and whispered in his ear. "I'm going to enjoy killing you almost as much as I enjoy playing with the little girls." And with that he slipped his arm around Tony's neck and began squeezing the life out of him.

Tony reached up, desperately trying to get his fingers between Hutton's rock hard arm and his neck, while trying to suck air, any air into his already abused throat. As he felt his lungs contract, trying to force a little oxygen into his system, Tony thought this time he might really be done for. He hated the thought of dying this way; somehow he'd always thought he'd go out in a blaze of glory, not lying cold and alone in a dark forest with a monster choking him out of existence.

Just as he thought it was over, both Hutton and Tony were startled to see a bright light break over them. Captain Hannah's angry voice filled the air. "Hutton! Stop it. We need him alive. We have to find out what he knows. Arik, stop him!"

It was obvious at this point, that Hutton's hatred of Tony had him completely beyond reason. Afraid he was going to be denied the pleasure of finishing him off by choking him, Hutton quickly placed his right hand on the back of Tony's head, intending to snap his neck. But sensing the slight change in pressure, Tony allowed his NCIS training to kick in, and he heaved with all his might. Just as he felt Hutton's grasp on his throat release, he also heard a gunshot, and second later, Hutton's heavy corpse collapsed on top of him.

Tony's abused body suddenly had had all it could take. The added weight of the man pushed his face into the dirt and he felt his consciousness retreat, even has he heard Hannah's shocked voice. "Why did you do that?" Tony wondered if that was the last sound he would ever hear as the all consuming darkness finally took him.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gibbs and Ziva both reacted to the sound of the gunshot in the distance. Without a word, they headed as fast as possible in the direction it had come from. Gibbs took the lead, but he could hear Ziva behind him, and his heart clenched as he heard her soft chant.

"No, no, no, no. Tony, you can't be dead. I didn't tell you I loved you yet."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A/N: Okay, hope you liked it. Chapter 10 up tomorrow.


	10. Chapter 10 Hang On, Tony!

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS and I make no money from any of this.**

_**A/N: Thanks to everyone for the awesome reviews. You are all amazing. Shout out to you all. Some Papa Gibbs in this one, some Tony angst, a good dose of hurt comfort and more death and destruction. Enjoy!**_

_**Two more chapters after this one. **_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Ten**

"**Hang On, Tony!"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Cari's head flew up when she heard the gunshot. "Oh no." Her voice was only a tiny whisper. "Tony." She felt an amazing sadness take her over. Though she didn't really know her rescuer, she had come to understand that he was a man of honor and great courage. It horrified her to think that he'd been killed on her behalf. For a moment, she didn't know if she had what it took to go on alone, but then she realized it would discredit his apparent sacrifice if she just gave up.

"_Think, Cari,"_ she silently instructed herself. Just as she was about to squirm out of her hiding place and try to get farther away, she heard a sound. Holding her breath, she remained absolutely still. And her patience was rewarded.

She gradually saw a very tiny light; then two sets of shoes appeared only a few feet in front of her. Straining, she listened intently, trying to decide what to, if she should reveal her hiding place. Because as they stopped, it was obvious that one of the pair of shoes belonged to a women.

"Ziva," a man's soft and unfamiliar voice reached her ears. "He's going to be ok. They didn't kill Tony. I'd know if he was dead."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Arik Famad turned toward his angry Captain. "I had to sir. He was going to kill Rodgers. And like you said, we need to know who he really is, if we're in any imminent danger. I'll kill him myself, once we're through with him."

Famad left a still seething Captain Hannah standing a few feet away, while he pushed Hutton's body off the man lying still and silent beneath him. "If I'm not too late already."

Holding his flashlight up so he could see, Hannah sighed and advanced, shining it down. "Well, Arik? Was it worth it? Is he still alive?" Famad's fingers found a spot on Tony's neck and pressed. He was rewarded with a fast fluttering. "Yes, he's still hanging on. Unbelievable."

Pushing Tony over onto his back, Famad then stood, before pulling the unconscious man into a fireman's hold and hoisting him to his shoulders. "Lead the way Captain. I'm sure we can make him talk when we get him back to the cabin."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Cari decided it was now or never. Calling out a soft, "Please. Help me," she began squirming out of her hiding place. She stopped when within an instant two guns were leveled at her face and an angry woman's voice, none the less deadly sounding for its calmness, instructed her to halt. Cari managed to extend her empty hands, and could not keep the tears from flowing.

"I'm not armed. I'm Ensign Cari Castilles. I was with Tony. Please, please, we have to help him. Oh God, I'm afraid they killed him."

At that Ziva quickly holstered her gun and assisted the shocked and crying woman out of the brush, as Gibbs kept a careful watch. "You were with Tony? How badly was he hurt? Where did you leave him? Was anyone else with you? Who fired that shot? Why are you alone? Why are you not wearing a shirt?" Ziva's questions came fast and furious, and she gave the terrified woman a little shake.

Gibbs, still alert for any sounds hissed at his obviously distraught agent. "Ziva! Stop it. Get a hold of yourself. Let the woman answer you."

Cari tried to stop her crying, but now that the immediate danger seemed to have passed, she couldn't stop shaking. Hoping things hadn't just gone from bad to worse; her quiet, broken hearted sobs filled the air.

Ziva took a deep breath and got herself under control, realizing that she had to calm down, or she would not be able to help anyone, especially Tony. "Right Gibbs. Sorry, Ensign." Helping the frightened woman to her feet, Ziva continued in a gentler voice.

"I am Agent Ziva David, of NCIS. This is Special Agent Gibbs. Special Agent Tony DiNozzo and I have been working undercover, trying to infiltrate the gang who has been murdering Navy women. You are safe, we have you." And Ziva slipped an arm around the younger woman, steadying her.

"But anything you can tell us will help us find him. Do you think you can talk now?"

Cari drew one last shuddering breath, and nodded her thanks as Ziva released her, and then took her jacket off, wrapping it around the shivering woman.

"Yes, I'm sorry." Another deep breath. "I was taken by three men, kidnapped earlier today. I thought Tony was with them, but, but then he helped me escape. He's hurt; he was shot when he fell. We both fell, but they shot Tony." Her voice raised slightly with each word, until her hiccupping breaths stopped her, and she pressed a hand to her eyes, trying to stop the scenes that were playing out in front of her.

Ziva closed her own eyes, hating to have what she had already suspected confirmed. "How badly was he hurt?" she asked, dreading the answer.

Cari lowered her hand, and continued. "It was bad. He was hit at least twice. I tried to help him; I'm a medic, so I have some training. I put a tourniquet on his arm, but he was bleeding a lot." Taking yet one more deep breath, Cari willed her medical training to take over.

"He was shot in the left arm, that's what was bleeding so badly. A through and through. I bandaged him, that's why I have no shirt." A mirthless little laugh accompanied that remark. "But he was also shot in the shoulder, just below his collarbone. Left side. That bullet is still in him, and his collar bone is broken. I think he has some broken ribs too, and his breathing was getting worse." Silence reigned for a moment. Then Cari softly added. "We had to rest; Tony needed to catch his breath. We were just starting off again, when, when," her voice trailed off and her composure broke again.

Satisfied that no one was close, Gibbs reached out a long arm. Smoothing the young woman's hair back from her dirty face, he gave her a tentative smile. "Shhh, it's ok. What happened next?"

Carried looked him in the eyes, and was reassured by what she saw. The introductions Ziva had briefly made suddenly registered with her. "Gibbs. You're Gibbs." It was a statement, rather than a question. "Tony said you would find us. He said you always have his six."

Gibbs felt the words go clear through him, straight to his gut. His expression changed slightly, altering from his concern for the shocked young woman in front of him, to fear that maybe this time, he might have been too late. Tony needed him and he had no real idea where he was, or what had happened. Though he refused to let on to Ziva, the last gunshot they'd heard had him alarmed. Gibbs truly believed he'd know if Tony was dead, but of course, he had nothing scientific to base that on.

Though they never talked about it and though Tony could anger him faster than anyone else on the team, Gibbs cared very deeply for the younger man. He knew if he'd ever had a son, he would want him to be exactly like one Anthony DiNozzo, Jr. It shocked him sometimes, since his and Tony's personalities were so different, at least on the surface. Tony was all laugher and jokes, and did his best to not only have a good time with life, but make sure everyone around him did as well. Gibbs tried to ignore life, except as it related to whatever NCIS case they were working on. But even he was often affected by Tony's obvious delight in living. He had lost count of the number of times he'd had to hide a smile at some of DiNozzo's antics, especially when it involved other members of the team.

Shaking his head slightly to refocus his thoughts, Gibbs repeated. "So, what happened next, Cari? I have to know exactly what took place in order to help Tony."

Cari squared her shoulders. "We were going to head north; Tony wanted to get us close to a road, so we could try and flag someone down. But they showed up. Hutton and, well, uh, um, I'm not completely certain who they all were. But I heard Hutton's voice. He said we had unfinished business."

Ziva had opened her eyes, staring intently into Cari's face as she had listed Tony's injuries a little earlier. Now she had to keep herself from closing them again. "What did he mean? What happened next?" her voice sounded flat to her own ears.

"I don't know for sure. Tony pushed me, shoved me away and yelled at me to run. Then I heard him shouting and, I took off. I didn't want to leave him, but I knew unless one of us got away, we had no chance. And Tony, he couldn't run, he could barely stand up. I don't know what happened!"

Cari's voice picked up speed as she related the terrifying events. "I heard a lot of yelling and, ugly sounds, and I just ran away from it as fast as I could, and hid here. I heard the shot a little while later. Did they kill him? Did I get him killed?" Tears welled up again, as Cari's horror was brought fresh into her mind once again.

Gibbs face was hard as a rock and his voice resolute. "No. He's not dead. I'd know it." He roughly patted Cari on the shoulder, but turned toward his agent. "Here's what we're going to do. Ziva, you're going to protect Cari. There was a spot just a little ways back, where we had cell reception. Call Tim, give him those coordinates. Have him lead the team in as soon as he can. Then, your first and most important job, Agent David, is to protect Miss Castilles. Do you understand that?" He peered into her eyes, willing her to listen to reason.

Ziva looked set to protest, but as she thought of all Tony had gone through to get this young woman to safety, she knew she had little choice. "Yes, Gibbs, I will take care of her. You stay safe, and find Tony. Please Gibbs," and Ziva could hardly believe the pleading tone she found herself using. "Please, bring him back to me. I love him. And I haven't told him yet. Please tell him I love him, when you see him." Her eyes challenged Gibbs to forbid her to love Tony, but all she saw in his eyes was his dawning comprehension and concern.

"I'll bring him back, David. But I'm NOT telling DiNozzo I love him. I'd never hear the end of it." With that Gibbs turned her back the way she'd come. "Now go on, get Tim on the phone. Get out of here."

As soon as Ziva and Cari were out of sight, Gibbs looked around. The shot had some from the west, not too far away. He figured it had been maybe 10-12 minutes since he'd heard it. Assuming Tony was still alive, but knowing he was injured, they would have to carry him if they were planning on taking him somewhere. So they would have to move a lot slower than he did.

Gibbs headed west, alert for any sounds that might give him direction on where his agent was.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Famad carried the wounded man easily, following Captain Hannah as he led the way back to the cabin. He thought about the risk he'd taken, shooting Hutton like that. Famad had gotten sucked into this club, almost by accident. He'd enjoyed it at first, he readily admitted that. His baser nature was all in favor of the rapes they'd committed early on. But when the rapes had turned to torture, and the torture to murder, something inside him had sickened. He'd wanted out, but had seen no way for that to happen, short of his own death. And he very much wanted to live.

When Rodgers had become part of this, at first he'd thought the guy was just another sicko, like all the rest of them. But something had been a little different, and when Rodgers had asked him if he'd regretted getting in, back in front of the apartment complex, he'd known then. Famad might be sick and twisted, but it didn't mean he was stupid. He'd figured Tony was on to them and maybe even working undercover. What he'd been trying to decide ever since that moment of clarity was how to turn the situation to his own advantage. He had no real concern for Rodger's well being, or whatever his real name was, but he was more than willing to use the man to his own advantage if possible.

And somewhere along the way, he had developed an absolute hatred for Hutton. That man had redefined sick and twisted, enjoying the torture and murder to the extreme, getting off on the women's pain and shrieks of terror. He was a bully, and a racist and Famad had known it was only a matter of time until one of them killed the other. He was just glad it had worked out that he could pull the trigger that had ended that particular bastard's life. Now he just had to figure a way to stay alive until he could get away from Captain Hannah. Famad figured they'd get whatever information they could out of Rodgers, then if necessary, he'd kill both of the other men, and leave the state. Leave the country if he had to.

Hannah cautiously opened the door to the secluded cabin. "Put him on the floor," he instructed. "Then go take a look around, and make sure no one has followed us. I'll try to revive sleeping beauty here, then we'll get to work."

Captain Hannah had been doing some thinking of his own. He was extremely angry at himself for having been taken in by Rodgers. He was normally a very good judge of character, and though he had liked the man, he had also thought he recognized a particular streak of evil in him, one that was necessary for the games they liked to play. Hannah had been doing this for a long time. He had wondered briefly about Rodgers, but when the kid had talked about the Emily Cokelur case, he'd been hooked. He'd followed that case avidly, and the chance to find out what had been done to the young woman had obviously colored his judgment. Well, he was over that.

Hannah watched as Famad nodded, and then turned around to go outside and check things out. As soon as his back was turned, Hannah with catlike stealth, advanced on him, drawing his knife silently. A quick slash and all that was left of Famad was his gurgling astonishment that it had ended like that. Hannah dragged his body into the cabin and dumped it unceremoniously in the corner. "Sorry, friend, but I can't trust anyone now."

Wiping the blade, he turned at a sound behind him and found Tony's eyes open and staring, obviously trying to figure out where he was and what had happened. His face was a mask of confusion and pain, and Hannah had no intention of letting those two useful tools go to waste. Laying the knife carefully out of reach on a shelf, he advanced on the wounded man.

"Well, Rodgers, or whatever your name is," he sneered. "You've led us a merry chase, and cost me two good men. But that's about to end now. You can make this easy on yourself and tell me what I want to know. Or you can make it entertaining for me, and you'll still tell me everything I want to know. What's it going to be, son?" Hannah had sidled around behind Tony, and before Tony could respond, he leaned over his left shoulder, using a knee to press into the bloody bullet wound.

A groan escaped Tony's lips as the pain burst forth. White hot anguish shot through his shoulder, and he tried to stifle his cries.

"Nothing?" Hannah demanded, increasing the pressure. "Really, nothing to say?" He could sense a killing rage coming over him. Shifting back, he eased the pressure from his knee. Feeling around with his hand, he discovered the broken pieces of Tony's collar bone when they shifted marginally. "That's okay, I don't mind waiting." And he leaned his weight forward, pressing harder, grinding the bone pieces into each other.

Tony could feel the nausea rising up as the bones moved. He'd had a lot of experience with pain prior to this, but nothing in his life had prepared him for the agony he was feeling now. Suddenly all that mattered was getting it to stop and he opened his mouth, ready to spill all he knew.

But as the words started to form, he suddenly saw Cari's frightened face, and knew she was at risk if he talked. Then in the middle of the sheer torment he was in, he thought of Ziva, and how disappointed he believed she would be if he gave in. Finally, as he snapped his mouth closed, and raised his right hand, futilely trying to pull Hannah's arm away, he could thought of Gibbs, and could swear he heard his voice in his head.

"Tony. Hang on. I'm coming. You know I've got your six. Just hold on, son."


	11. Chapter 11 I Don't Even Know Your Name

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS and I make no money from any of this.**

**A/N: Thanks to everyone for the awesome reviews. You are all amazing. Shout out to you all. **

**Warning, this chapter is graphic and bloody. Lots of really, really hurt Tony in this one. Let me know if you think I need to change the rating. **

**One chapter to go after this one**** which I'm currently editing and rewriting – since I wasn't happy with the ending. If I get it finished I'll post it tomorrow. **

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Eleven**

"**But You Never Even Told Me Your Name"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Ziva David herded the young woman in front of her, senses alert for any noise, heading steadily back the way she and Gibbs had come a short time earlier. She alternated between looking around, listening to everything, and checking her cell phone for reception. Finally rewarded with two bars, she quietly told Cari to stop.

Snapping the phone open, she pressed the # 3 for Tim's number. She was more than a little surprised when Director Vance's voice answered. "McGee's phone, is this Agent David?"

Nonplussed, Ziva paused for just a second. Then she marshaled her thoughts and answered. "Yes. Director, we need help. I'm sending some coordinates to Tim's phone. Send a rescue party and make sure you have a medical team standing by."

Without waiting for a response, Ziva ended the call and entered the coordinates, then sent the message on its way. As soon as the quiet chime sounded, indicating it had gone through; she dialed Tim's number again.

This time she was prepared for the Director's voice. "Vance. I'm getting the message now. Stand by. I want a full briefing as soon as the team is on the way."

A few short minutes went by, though it seemed like ages to the waiting women. Ziva remained alert, straining to catch any sound. For just a second she thought she heard something, like a distant twig snapping, but then silence took over once more.

When she felt her phone vibrate, she opened it immediately. "David." Her voice was as terse and blunt as Vance's had been. "Director, I have a woman with me, she was kidnapped earlier. Ensign Cari Castilles, she's shaken up some, but she's all right. Tony rescued her, but he's been injured. How soon will the team be here?"

To her amazement, it was Abby's voice that came over the line. "Ziva! Where's Tony? Where's Gibbs? What happened to Tony! How bad is he hurt?" Ziva shook her head. "Abby, how did you get the phone away from the Director? Has the team headed out yet?"

Abby's voice was excited and keyed up. "Yes, they're on their way. Both Timmy and Vance are leading it. Ducky is following with Jimmy and a medical team. Where are you? What's happening? Where is Tony?"

Ziva took a few moments to update Abby, leaving out the part about the last gunshot they'd heard. It was bad enough having to tell the scientist of Tony's other injuries. Silence greeted her when she finished, then Abby's tear-filled voice came back on. "You tell Miss Castilles she did good, really good. Hug her for me. And find him, Ziva, please? You have to find Tony. Tell him I love him and I'll let him hold Bert, and I'll let him beat me at bowling, and he can play with Major Mass Spec, and I'll share my Caf Pow, and I'll even turn my music down. I'll watch stupid old movies with him. Anything. But you have to find him." A pause, followed by a hiccupping sigh made Ziva feel even worse for Abby. Her voice sounded somehow smaller as she implored one last time, "He has to be ok. Okay?"

Ziva did her best to reassure Abby, while keeping alert to her surroundings. Suddenly, over Abby's chatter, she was sure she'd heard something. "Abby. Abby!" she whispered urgently. "Listen to me. Call Vance and Tim. Tell them I just heard something and it's not coming from the direction Gibb's was headed. Reroute them here. Now!"

Cari's eyes flew open, she had heard something too. In the night air, certain sounds carried better than others. Muffled voices were difficult to pick up, but the snap of twigs and the sounds of a door closing was hard to mistake.

Ziva thought quickly, then turned to the young woman, grasping her by her arms. "Cari, listen to me. That may be them. I think it's coming just over from a little to our left. I need you to be strong. I want you to stay here, stay hidden," and Ziva gently pushed the younger woman down, under some low hanging bushes. It wasn't an area that was nearly as a good of a hiding spot as the one Cari had found earlier, but it would have to do. "Take my phone. Just hit redial for help. Or # 1 for Gibbs. You can do this."

Cari looked absolutely terrified, and she also wanted to be of some help, but she was at the end of her endurance. Quietly sobbing again, she took the phone and shrank back, trying to hide herself within the branches. "Just go. Help him, but be careful. And please, don't forget me." Ziva surprised them both by giving the girl a quick hug. "I'll be careful and you'll be fine. Say a prayer for us, okay?" And with that the newest NCIS Agent took off, stealthily heading toward the noises she'd heard. Somehow, she just knew Tony was nearby. Gibb's might feel Tony in his gut, but she could feel him in her heart.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gibbs traversed the area quickly, and found the body of the man known as Hutton without any trouble. He'd only gone about 10 minutes before literally stumbling over the man. Checking for a pulse, he found none. Turning on his light briefly, he saw the gunshot wound to the side of the man's head and sighed with relief. "I knew that bullet didn't have your name on it, Dinozzo." Checking his cell phone, he saw that he had one bar and decided to risk a check in. Dialing Tim's number, he knew he shouldn't be surprised when Abby answered it. She quickly updated him on the latest from Ziva and informed him that rescue and medical teams were on their way.

Gibbs had to admit the picture of a team being jointly led by McGee and Director Vance was amusing, if not a little alarming. Promising to keep Abby updated as much as possible, Gibbs started looking around. Seeing obvious signs of a struggle, he figured DiNozzo must have gone on the offensive. Noting the amount of debris strewn around, along with the blood, he sat back on his heels. _"You must have put up one hell of a fight DiNozzo. Atta boy." _

Picking up their trail proved almost impossible, but by going slowly and back tracking every time he lost it, he eventually figured out the direction the thugs had taken Tony. To his dismay, it led directly back the way he had originally come, right toward Ziva and Cari.

Giving up caution, and breaking into a trot, Gibbs shook his head. "_Damn it, why can't this ever be easy?" _

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Captain Craig Hannah laughed; sounding a bit hysterical as Tony ineffectually tried to bat his arm away. "What's the matter, Rodgers? Don't you want to play my games anymore?"

Tony could no longer contain his cries, and the agony he felt came out in a muted and strangled scream. White spots flashed before his face and he prayed for unconsciousness to take him, afraid he would talk, afraid he might spill everything just to get the pain to stop.

Hannah seemed to be spurred on by the sounds of Tony's pain. "I thought you wanted to be a member of my club, boy. What happened? You don't seem like you're having as much fun as I am."

As suddenly has he had started, Hannah abruptly released his brutal hold on Tony's shoulder. Leaning back, he wiped a bloody hand across his face. He watched the younger man roll and moan in his anguish for a few moments. Getting up, he went to a sink and poured himself a glass of water. Refilling the glass, he leaned over Tony, who was now breathing in short gasps, and seemed on the verge of passing out.

Dumping the glass out, he spilled the icy cold water over DiNozzo's face. At Tony's inadvertent quick intake of breath, he knelt down beside him. Grasping his chin in his steel hard fingers, he wrenched Tony's face over until he was starting directly into his eyes.

Tony reacted in shock to the cold water, and it revived him, much to his dismay. He'd been hoping to pass out, and for a quick death, if it came to that. But he felt his face held in an iron grip, and turned his eyes up, until he was looking in Hannah's face. And he saw the eyes of a madman looking back at him.

"Well, Tony," Hannah kept his grip firm, not letting Tony turn away. "Are you ready to tell me what I want to know?" Tony swallowed, convulsively. He still wasn't sure he wasn't going to throw up and he had a feeling it wouldn't gain him any points if he did. Deciding that showing fear was the worst thing he could do, he hardened his resolve.

Through his tightly clenched teeth and managed a response. "You haven't asked me anything." And then Tony made a decision he was afraid he'd come to regret. Just looking at the man sickened him. Knowing that the hands that were holding him immobile were the same hands that had inflicted such sick and brutal torture on innocent women was more than he could stand. Gathering himself, he gave a sharp yank, and as Hannah's grip loosened briefly, Tony opened his mouth. But instead of answering him, he spit full in the man's astonished face. His blood and spittle seemed to hang for just a second, before beginning to slide down, dripping onto his collar.

In the instant that it took Hannah to react, Tony rolled to his right, reaching out for a weapon, anything he might be able to find to defend himself. Coming in contact with a chair leg, he felt a shock of adrenalin shoot through him as Hannah gave a roar of pure rage and lunged at him. Closing his fist around the chair, he had just enough strength to raise it and bring it down across the top of Hannah's head.

For a split second, there was silence, and Tony dared to hope he had at least stunned the beast, if not killed him. But luck was not smiling on one Very Special Agent Anthony Dinozzo at that moment. Though Hannah appeared momentarily stunned, long enough for Tony frantically scramble backwards, it was only a few seconds before the Captain shook his head and regained his senses.

Standing, he wiped the spit and blood off of his face. Tony had managed to claw his way to a sitting position and tried to back away, but was trapped by the wall behind him. Seeming inhumanly calm now, Captain Hannah looked around, and spotted the knife he had left on the shelf.

"That was very stupid, Tony. I was willing to be civil, and ask my questions nicely, but now you've lost that opportunity." Grasping the knife, he hefted it in his right hand.

"Tell me. Are you with one of the local police departments? Or perhaps you're a member of the FBI? Maybe one of the Navy's elite, NCIS?" He shook his head, testing the edge of the knife on his own left thumb. A thin line of blood appeared where he drew it along his own skin, and he appeared fascinated by it.

"It doesn't really matter; I just wanted to know if you'd been able to examine any of my handiwork. The others, they were more into the rape and beatings. But my favorite part was when I got to slice into a girl's tender, young flesh. Did you see what I did to Erin Kinnett?"

At Tony's involuntary gulp of revulsion, Hannah's eyes lit up. "Ah, I see by your reaction, you did. Well, _Lt. Commander Tony Rodgers,_ that was nothing compared to what I intend to do to you."

And before Tony could move, Hannah advanced, dropping to his knees in front of him. He slapped Tony viciously across the face, momentarily stunning him. Enjoying it, he slammed Tony's head into the wall, and then laid the man back down on the floor. Lightly slapping him on his cheek, he said "No, no. Wakey, wakey. I want you to enjoy this as much as I do."

Tony tried to sink into oblivion. He welcomed the darkness, trying to draw it to himself, desperate for its release. But the light slaps had the effect Hannah desired, and the darkness retreated, leaving pain in its wake.

Hannah casually used the knife to slice through the bandages that Cari had so carefully applied. Pressing a little harder, he sliced almost gently into Tony's already abused flesh, stopping when Tony gasped and swallowed, trying not to scream.

"What I want to know is—were you working alone?" Hannah continued dragging the knife along Tony's left collar bone. "Let's see know, it looks to me like the bullet is still in there. That won't do, will it?"

And Tony knew he was going to die in the next moment, at least he prayed fervently that he would. He felt the knife pierce his skin, and slowly plunging into his shoulder, felt it cut deeply as Hannah searched for the bullet.

"Have you had enough yet, Rodgers? Just tell me what I want to know, and I'll stop." Hannah was lying of course; he had every intention of inflicting as much pain on the man in front of him, before killing him. By now the sickness had taken over, he no longer cared if Tony talked or not. His only focus was the pain he was causing. He dug the knife deeper still; feeling it scrape bone, then withdrew it a little, forcing it in yet another direction.

Tony couldn't understand how he could still be alive, yet alone awake. He was past coherent thought, unable to speak if he had wanted to. His mouth was open in a soundless, pitiful scream that seemed to go on and on in his brain, though no sound actually escaped. He knew he could bear no more when he felt the knife blade move again, and as the tip of it brushed against the bullet, Tony's whole body bucked upward, straining against the agony, and finally the scream found its voice.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A long piercing wail, sounding inhuman, but also unmistakably belonging to Tony penetrated the calm that had surrounded the cabin. Ziva had Gibbs had been approaching silently from opposite sides, but with the blood curdling sound, they abandoned their caution and both sprinted toward the direction it came from.

They literally almost bumped into each other about 10 feet away from the cabin. Ascertaining that Cari was safe, Gibbs had just motioned for Ziva to go around to the back, but before she could, the air was shattered by a second scream from inside. Not waiting, Gibbs leaped forward, kicking the door violently open. Knowing Ziva was right behind him; he stopped in shock, his eyes taking in the horrific scene in front of him.

Tony was lying on the ground, back arched, with his lips peeled back, with the dreadful sound coming from the very core of his being. His right hand was clawing frantically at the knife that was protruding from just below his left collar bone; a knife that still had both of Hannah's hands wrapped around it. His left was pulling on Hannah's sleeve, feebly trying to stop the torture being done to him.

It took Ziva less than 3 seconds to size things up. Gibbs was shouting, "Let go of the knife, get your hands up!" as he advanced like a vengeful demon on the madman who was killing his Senior Agent. Hannah looked up, the madness evident and just smiled. With a yank, he withdrew the knife and started to hurl it in Gibb's direction.

Things happened all at once. Gibbs and Ziva both emptied their pistols into the enraged Captain, as Tony tried to stop the knife from leaving his hand. Hannah's expression was one of shock, and he turned slightly, looking at the bleeding, terrified man lying almost beneath him.

"But you never even told me your name," he managed to whisper before slumping over, dead before his head hit the ground, coming to a rest across the man who had somehow managed to bring his whole organization down.

Tony's gasps for breath were the only thing anyone heard for a few precious seconds. Ziva holstered her weapon, and rushed to him as Gibb's kicked the knife away from Hannah, and shifted the man off of his injured agent.

Leaning over Tony, the man who felt like a son to him, Gibbs knew stark fear. He could see that the light leaving his eyes. Ziva was frantically trying to staunch the flow of blood; even as she was whispering soft words to the man she knew she loved. "Tony, don't you die. You hold on. I love you, do you hear me? You can't die."

LeRoy Jethro Gibbs looked deep into Tony's eyes. He placed his hand on Tony's forehead, smoothing the hair back. "Listen to her, now, son." Gibbs voice was uncharacteristically soft. "You stay with us, you hear me? Stay with us."

Tony heard their voices, heard Ziva declaring her love, heard his bosses' order, but he knew this time he just couldn't obey. "Sorry, boss," were the last words he said as the darkness finally claimed him.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_**A/N: Okay, I know. I'm really, really sorry, I know that was an evil cliffy. But I just had to, one more time.**_


	12. Chapter 12 I'll Never Unlove You

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything NCIS and I make no money from any of this. But I have truly enjoyed playing with my favorite TV Sh****ow characters. I hope you appreciate they are returned all nice and shiny and clean, and relatively unharmed. **

**Thanks to everyone for reviewing, I have tried to reply personally to each of you at least once. If I missed any of you, please let me know and I'****ll make sure I send you a note. And thank you to each of you who alerted the story, or alerted me as author, and especially to all who marked it as a favorite. I'm also excited about the amount of traffic this story has gotten – overwhelmed even. **

**Here is a shout out to all who reviewed, in no particular order (again, if I missed you, I apologize. Let me know, and I'll correct my mistake):**

**NazChick, DS 2021, boodebbie, ShortSarcasm, NCIS Connection, 7Seven7, MTG, Robern, Xena 101, misspalmer, Aunt Jo, Sparkiebunny, NCIStivaLOVE, Hezwel01, DarkRose2006, Megth, ForeignMusicLyrics, Chantell 11, Pia, mprmusings, iloveNCIStiva, mikiss, Anna, Jazz248, Project 0, DiNo22, earenemith, AirStriker, Ncisfan with Tivafever, aquasm and Leiah.**

**When I started this story, I really had no idea if I could finish it, or where it would ****end up. I am pleased I was able to conclude it and post the last chapter today, since next week will be way too busy. My next project is returning to college to get my degree, with classes starting on Monday, so I don't know when I'll have time to write another. But I do have an idea for a one shot floating around in my head, so maybe I can get that on paper sometime between classes. And thank you one more time, for all your concern for my husband. I'll try to update his condition when I post the one shot, which will be called "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep."**

**This chapter has some Tiva fluff, as requested by several and more Tony angst, as requested by many, and hopefully ****will be enjoyed by all. Any medical errors are all mine, I simply write what I like, while trying not to get too far fetched.**

**Again, thank you all for reading; you make an author's heart pound with pride. Now, I hope you enjoy the final chapter of "Unlove."**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"**Unlove"**

**Chapter Twelve**

"**I'll Never Unlove You"**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo remembered little of the next several days. He felt himself float in and out of awareness and his mind was plagued with terrible dreams and nightmares, where he was running, trying to rescue people, women he didn't know, or Ziva. Once he was even trying to reach Gibbs, but each time, he would be stopped by agonizing pain.

Finally, after struggling in one particularly vicious dream, his eyes fought to open, and he shouted "No!" The sound of his own terrified voice brought him toward wakefulness.

Immediately he felt a hand in his, and fingers on his forehead, testing for fever. A quiet voice, belonging to someone he knew was gently calling his name. "Tony. Tony, listen now. Can you hear me? It's all right. You're safe, I'm safe. It's all right now. Wake up, please wake up." It was the despair in the voice he heard that finally forced his eyes open. Blinking against the light he tried to bring her face into focus. "Ziva?"

A huge sigh escaped her lips. "Yes, Tony. It is Ziva. Now hold still. I need to call for the doctor."

Tony's confusion grew. He could remember just bits and pieces of the recent past, flashes of blinding pain and frantic voices all around him. "What happened? Where am I?" Even in his confusion, Tony grimaced when he heard those words coming from his mouth. Talk about a bad movie line. But he was rewarded when Ziva's lovely face came back into view.

"You're in the hospital, Tony. You've been here almost a week. What do you remember happening last?" Ziva knew better than to try to keep information from him. She had been badly injured before, and she knew the confusion could be the most terrifying part of the recovery process. She was determined to spare Tony from as much of that as possible.

Tony's mouth opened and closed and then he coughed, a deep, wracking cough that left him weak and disoriented again. "Water?" he croaked out. Ziva let him sip just a tiny bit from a glass with a straw, which she held for him. "No more until the Doctor gets here. Do you remember anything?"

Tony closed his eyes, trying to hold back another cough. As he fought it down, more memories surfaced. Suddenly, he remembered. "Cari! Is she ok, where is she? Did she…?" And again the wracking coughs kept him from continuing. Ziva helped him lean forward, gently rubbing his back, waiting for the coughing fit to subside a little. "Shhh, don't talk. I promise, I'll tell you everything. And Cari is fine."

Just then the door opened, and Dr. Brad Pitt walked in, followed closely by Gibbs. "He's awake, then?" Pitt asked, checking Tony's vitals. "Hey there, DiNozzo, how's it hanging?" He grinned into Tony's confused eyes. Though Dr. Pitt was still very concerned for Tony's condition, he knew teasing the agent was the best way to reassure him.

Tony managed to swallow his retort, especially when it started out as another choking cough. "Just peachy, doc, can't you tell?" His raspy voice sounded like music to Gibb's ears.

"All right, then Tony. Lay back, let me take a look." And Dr. Pitt became all business, giving him a thorough exam. Ziva did not let go of his hand the entire time, simply shifting out of the way as necessary. Finally, Pitt sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Well, DiNozzo, you gave us quite a scare this time. But I think you're going to make it." Holding his hand up, he forestalled the questions he knew were forming in Tony's head. "Nope, no questions, not right now. This lovely young lady can fill you in on all the details, after you've had a little nap." And before Tony could voice his protest, the doctor added something to his IV. Tony's eyes closed of their own volition, and as he finally sank into a peaceful sleep, he heard Pitt's voice. "Nighty-night, now."

As soon as Tony had drifted to sleep, Dr. Pitt turned toward the two people in the room, who had been there almost continuously since Tony had been brought in over a week before.

"I think he'll be fine. He's got a long road ahead, but now that the infection seems to be receding, we can get the pneumonia knocked down. And once that's cleared up, he can have the surgery he needs to repair the damage to his shoulder." Shaking his head, Dr. Pitt watching the sleeping man a moment longer. "I really thought we were going to lose him this time."

On hearing that Tony would be fine, Ziva's legs seemed to give out. She had been the very pillar of strength, ever since that terrible night in the cabin, as she and Gibbs had fought to save his life, waiting for rescue to arrive. Cari's arrival and help had been invaluable; she had heard the commotion and the gunshots, and gathering her courage, had run to the cabin, determined to help.

Ziva knew she would be forever grateful to the young woman, who had bounced back from her ordeal by announcing her intention to pursue a career in forensics. She and Abby had hit it off, and though Cari had no desire to ever go through such an experience again, the whole thing had peaked her interest. She now knew she wanted to be in law enforcement, but safely behind a computer screen.

Ziva found her way to the chair Gibbs helpfully pulled out and pushed her into. "It's all right Ziva, you heard the doc. He's going to be fine." Gibbs wouldn't admit out loud to the relief those words had given him. He also had been terrified that this time, Tony's luck had run out. He yanked the other chair in the room around and sank into it. He thought back to the frenzied time in the cabin, when Tony's life had hung in the balance.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX **

After he had confirmed Hannah was dead, hating to leave, but knowing Tony's survival depended on immediate medical care; Gibbs had sprinted into the woods, running until his cell phone had finally shown it had reception. Punching in Tim's number, he had shouted instructions, demanding they get there, now! Running back to the cabin, waiting to see if his agent was still alive, had felt like the longest few minutes of his life.

When Gibbs had returned, he'd found both Ziva and Cari working on his Senior Agent. Cari had taken charge; and between them they had pulled Tony into a sitting position, trying to ease his labored breathing. Ziva was sitting against the wall, her legs on either side of the injured man, bracing him, his head lolled back against her shoulder.

Cari looked up as Gibbs burst into the room. "Gibbs," she had ordered him without even thinking about it. "Find some cloth and get it wet, and bring it here. I need to pack this wound, we have to get the bleeding stopped and we can't wait for help." She was on her knees, with both hands pressed firmly onto Tony's heavily bleeding shoulder. But as hard as she tried, she had been unable to do more than barely slow the flow of blood.

Gibbs looked around for inspiration, then yanked his jacket off and pulled his shirt over his head. Quickly ripping it into several lengths, he got them wet at the same sink Hannah had used to get his last drink of water. Wringing them out tightly he hurried to Cari's side, carefully folding the strips of cloth over until they were small enough to make the kind of pads she needed. Not evening bothering to thank him, Cari quickly placed 3 of the pads, one on top of the other, on the gaping wound, and pressed firmly until they settled inside the wound.

Ziva's mouth pressed into a hard line, as Tony moaned in pain at the added pressure on his shoulder. She knew Cari had to do it, but she hated the fact they were obviously causing him more pain, even though he didn't fully regain consciousness. Cari ignored his sounds of distress, instead holding her hand out to Gibbs without looking at him. "Let me have two more, unfolded." Gibbs quickly handed her what she wanted, then helped ease Tony forward slightly, steadying the man who was too weak to stay upright on his own.

Cari quickly wound the strips around his shoulder, tying them tightly over the packed wound. "Do you have any more?" she asked Gibbs, pausing for a moment to wipe the sweat off her forehead, not realizing she left a streak of bright red blood on her skin as she did so. Gibbs handed her another pad, which she opened up, refolding it until it was twice as large as the previous pads. Putting it over the bandage she'd already placed, she applied pressure again, nodding for the others to lay him back.

After that, she and Gibbs took turns applying pressure, trying to stanch the blood loss. Though it slowed somewhat, they were unable to get it stopped completely. Gibbs wasn't sure who was more relieved out of three of them when first Timothy McGee, then Vance called out a warning before entering the cabin. Ducky and Palmer were right behind them, and Ducky quickly took over.

Cari hovered nearby, reluctant to turn the care of the man she had come to consider a hero over to anyone, but Gibbs quietly reassured her that Tony was in the best possible hands. Once he got her settled, he looked at Ducky and wordless communication passed between the two men. Ducky's eyes looked worried and he shook his head ever so slightly. He just didn't know what young Anthony's chances were. "Mr. Palmer," he glanced at the man Tony referred to as the "Autopsy Gremlin, nodding at the supplies. "We need to start an IV immediately. Ringers Lactate for now, if you please."

As Ducky and Palmer worked over the fallen agent, Gibbs took charge outside. A hurried conference with Director Vance and Agent McGee soon had things in order. With Vance leading the way, they left to set things in motion that would round up the rest of the "Torture Club." After all Tony had gone through to stop them, none of the team had any intention of letting anyone get away.

Ziva remained right where she was; wanting to be near Tony, holding him as closely as she could. Though she knew he was strong, she had seen other men wounded less severely who had died before they could get them to a hospital. Leaning forward slightly, she smoothed Tony's hair back from his forehead, noting with alarm that he was already beginning to radiate heat. "You are going to be fine, DiNozzo, do you hear me? We, you and I, we are not yet finished with things." Her murmured words could not be heard by anyone, except possibly Ducky, who chose to ignore them. "I need you to wake up, Tony," Ziva continued. "I need to tell you that I love you." Her soft words provided a backdrop to the frenetic activity going on all around her.

When Gibbs had returned to the now crowded room, he saw Tony lying prone on the ground, his head resting on Ziva's lap. Ducky was leaning over him, stethoscope in hand, listening intently to his chest. "Duck?" Gibbs's voice inflection caught the M.E's attention. Looking up, he shook his head again. "I don't know Jethro. He is critical, and his lungs don't sound good at all. It's going to be touch and go for awhile."

Tony chose that moment to suddenly open his eyes. Though he seemed aware of his surroundings, he kept his mouth tightly closed. At first Ziva thought he was in a haze, maybe unsure of where he was or what was happening. Bending closer, she whispered his name, trying to get a response. Tony's eyes shifted, and he looked at Ziva. At her continued prompting, he finally opened his mouth slightly, but before he could say whatever he had wanted to, an agonized groan escaped, and he clamped his lips closed again, clenching his teeth tightly. But his eyes never left her face and he seemed to be trying to communicate. And then she understood.

Tony was all too aware of where he was. But the pain was so bad; he couldn't open his mouth without crying out in pain. Ziva could not stop a few tears from pooling in her eyes. "It's ok, Tony. You don't have to say anything. I know. I love you too." Tony seemed to relax, just a little, and incredibly he lifted his right hand, reaching toward her. As she bent a little closer, he carefully swiped a tear from the corner of her eye, then his hand flopped back to the floor and his eyes slid closed again.

Things had gone quickly after that; Tony was carefully wrapped in blankets and carried out on a stretcher. There were more than enough volunteers to carry him, but Gibbs refused to relinquish his hold on one of the stretcher grips, remaining right next to Tony's head the entire way. Ziva had walked along side, holding his hand, and they had finally arrived at the road, where he was quickly loaded into the waiting ambulance for transfer to the hospital.

Gibbs had ridden in the ambulance with Tony, refusing to let Ziva come with them, tasking her instead with getting Cari to safety. He'd exchanged glances with Leon Vance, who had nodded ever so slightly, and Gibbs knew he'd see that Ziva arrived safely and as quickly as possible.

Gibbs hated to deny her, but he'd been so afraid Tony wouldn't make it, and he hadn't wanted Ziva to have to see that. His own heart had seemed to stop beating when Tony had coded—twice—on the ride in. He'd barely been revived by the time the ambulance had arrived at the emergency room doors, and Tony had been taken away to immediate surgery.

Then the long, agonized hours of waiting for word had ensued. As each team member had arrived, Gibbs had greeted them with a shake of his head. Ducky and Palmer had followed the ambulance in, and the worried doctor had gone immediately to get an update, but even he wasn't able to learn much. Tim had arrived next, having handed his duties off to another team, and bringing a tearful Abby with him.

It had been hardest when Ziva had come in, driven there by Director Vance himself. She had paced endlessly up and down, wavering between fury and fear, as the hours went on. Finally, an OR doctor had come out, and the report had been as grim as they'd feared. Though Tony had survived the emergency surgery, he was on a ventilator and truthfully, they didn't expect him to live through the next 24 hours.

Ziva and Gibbs had coerced the medical staff into letting at least one of them stay with him, even in ICU. As Dr. Pitt had stated, it did little good to try and keep them out, since they would simply disregard orders and stay with him anyway. As long as they were gowned up against the added dangers of infection, they were allowed in.

Three days later, Tony's left lung had collapsed and he'd been rushed back to emergency surgery. Pneumonia was the result and his fever had spiked again. They could tell he was in pain and reliving much of his ordeal, by his fevered mutterings and pitiful cries. Though the doctors kept him sedated as much as possible, the fever went high enough that he still suffered. And every time he cried out, Ziva suffered with him. She still didn't know if she was going to get the chance to tell him how much she had come to love him, beyond the hurried whisperings in the cabin.

In the long hours of waiting, she had worked up the courage to tell Gibbs that she and Tony had been dating. She had not really been surprised when Gibbs had snorted softly and said, "Tell me something I don't know." When she pressed him, asking him if he intended to forbid their relationship, Gibbs asked her point blank, "Would it do any good if I did?" She had smiled for the first time and quietly said, "No."

After that, the silence between them as they waited had not been so strained. And finally, now, after 4 more long days of waiting, when Ziva had been unsure if she could take much more, she could relax. As Tony slept, peacefully for the first time in days, she felt her own eyes sliding shut against her will. Her last conscious act was to protest slightly as Gibbs directed her head down on his shoulder. "Shh, sleep now, Ziva. He'll be here when you wake up."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Three weeks later, a very exuberant Tony DiNozzo was sitting on the side of his bed, waiting for Ziva to get back with his clothes. Finally, he was going home. For once, after being injured, he wasn't going to Gibb's house to recuperate. **That** felt a little strange. But as he pondered the reason why he was going to his own apartment, he couldn't stop a smile from dancing across his face.

Ziva. She had finally told him exactly how much she had come to love him. Tony felt that everything he'd been through was worth it, just to hear her say the words. And now, she was coming to stay with him while he finished recuperating. The surgery to repair the extensive damage to his shoulder had gone well, but he had weeks of therapy before he would be back to full speed. He still needed help with the most absurdly small things, like buttoning his shirt, or fastening his belt. He was not happy with how weak he was, unable to even walk for more than a few minutes before he needed to rest. And he wasn't going to be allowed to drive any time soon.

Nevertheless, Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo was a very happy man. Ziva loved him. And he loved her. And wonder of wonders, Gibbs knew about it and apparently wasn't going to kill either one of them. He'd made that clear one night when Tony had been unable to sleep after a particularly harrowing therapy workout. Gibbs had showed up, somewhere around 3:00 a.m.

"Still awake DiNozzo?" he snapped. "I need you rested up so you can get back to work. Things are piling up on your desk." Gibbs knew the younger man needed to feel missed.

Tony had shifted, trying to get comfortable, but not wanting to ask for any more pain meds. He was tired of feeling groggy and disoriented all the time.

Gibbs, however, had no such compunction. Pressing the button to call the nurse, he had cheerfully ignored Tony's protests. As soon as the nurse gave him the shot, he had waited for the restlessness to subside, had leaned over and whispered. "Mind your doctors, now, DiNozzo, and get well. Ziva is driving me crazy. You need to get home and take care of her."

Tony might have thought he'd imagined it, except that the next day, Ziva had informed him she was moving in with him, to help him recover. When Tony had spluttered a protest, looking up at Gibbs who was leaning nonchalantly against the wall, arms folded across his chest, trying to look stern, she had waved her hand in his direction. "Just ignore him Tony. He already knows all about us. It is fine. I fixed it for us." Gibbs had shaken his head, and the left the room, unable to contain the grin at the bewilderment on Tony's features. _"That one may be just a bit more than you bargained, for DiNozzo. This could be fun, after all."_

Tony's thoughts chased themselves all through his active brain, as he waited for Ziva. Though he wasn't due to be discharged for a couple more hours, he wanted to be ready. Finally she came in, and dumped his sweat pants, along with a casual shirt on his lap. "Think you can dress yourself, Tony, or do you need my help?" She brushed her lips across his, and murmured, "After all, you need to be careful and not damage anything I might want to play with later."

Tony might not be 100%, but he knew exactly how to react to that. Laughing, he pulled the surprised but happy woman fully into his arms. "I'll show you just how undamaged I am, Miss David. Never fear. You'd better be careful, I might scare you. Maybe you'll 'unlove' me, after I show you exactly how good I'm feeling."

And Tony covered her mouth with his own, deepening the kiss, and eliciting a little moan from her. As they broke apart for a moment, breathless, she whispered against his lips, "No Tony, you taught me that much. I don't think either one of us could ever 'unlove' now."

And breaking off kiss off for good, she stood up, and pointed him toward the bathroom. "Now, get dressed. I have to get you home. There's a party tonight you know, and everyone will be there."

At Tony's groan, she covered her smile. "Don't worry though; I won't let them stay too long. I want you all to myself."

At that, Tony hurried, and when he came out, he sat down in the chair, pulling Ziva over to sit astride his lap. "All right, and then you can tuck me into bed, how does that sound?"

"It sounds heavenly, Agent DiNozzo; it sounds heavenly."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**The End (or is it the beginning?)**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Thank you all so much for reading. Your support for this story has amazed me. Take care, until next time. _Caro_


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